Turmeric’s nutritional profile has also led to its status as a superfood for its multitude of antioxidants and other disease-fighting compounds. In fact, Food Revolution Network recently published a cookbook called Real Superfoods — written by Ocean Robbins with recipes by yours truly — where turmeric features prominently in many a recipe.

In addition to flavoring dishes and lending its powerful health benefits, turmeric also contributes its bright yellow color, which has led to its use as a natural food dye. (And if you’ve ever spilled curry on your shirt, you know that turmeric is also a powerful and permanent fabric dye.)

So how can you reap the highly prized benefits of turmeric? And what are some ways you can incorporate it into your own cooking?

In this article, we’ll look at where you can find the golden spice, whether it’s better fresh or dried, and how to use turmeric in recipes.

What Does Turmeric Taste Like?

I’m going to sound like a wine sommelier for a minute here because turmeric is a complex spice that isn’t easy to describe. So here goes nothing. I’d say that the best words for the flavor of turmeric are “earthy,” “fragrant,” and “somewhat bitter.” I might also throw in “peppery” and “pungent” for good measure. Those attributes, as well as the spice’s bright yellow color and potent health benefits, can be traced back to curcumin, the active compound in turmeric that’s a proud member of the polyphenol family.

And while turmeric bears a close resemblance to some curry powders, it’s not the same thing. You can often find turmeric as an ingredient in curry, which is actually a spice blend that also features cumin, coriander, cardamom, cloves, and cinnamon, among others (this curry is brought to you by the letter C).

Where to Buy Turmeric

Like curry powder, you can find dried, powdered turmeric in most grocery and health stores in the US and throughout the industrialized world. You can also find it online and at Indian grocery stores. Both of these options are good sources if you plan to use it often and prefer to buy it in bulk.

Fresh turmeric is harder to find. In the US, the tropical plant is grown mainly in Florida and Hawaii, where it’s in season from winter to summer. If you live in a tropical zone, you may be able to get fresh turmeric at a local farmers market. But because it’s hard to find US-grown turmeric, the US is actually the world’s largest importer of turmeric.

Some Western grocery stores (including Sainsbury’s in the UK and Publix, Walmart, and Whole Foods in the US) may carry fresh turmeric. It looks a bit like fresh ginger root, except the turmeric root is thinner and yellower. Natural foods and Indian grocery stores may also have it in stock. In Europe, the Netherlands has become the champion turmeric purchaser, surpassing the UK following the trade upheavals that accompanied Brexit.

However, India is the world’s largest producer of turmeric, with the majority coming from the state of Andhra Pradesh. The two turmeric growing seasons in India are February–May and August–October.

If you happen to be in India, you will have no trouble finding turmeric at the many spice markets in towns and cities across the country. The Indian healing tradition of Ayurveda has venerated turmeric for millennia for its culinary and medicinal properties. It’s also used on religious occasions and in wedding ceremonies. Brides don necklaces dyed with turmeric. And in the pre-wedding haldi ceremony, couples and loved ones are smeared with a turmeric paste.

How to Choose and Store Turmeric

Like its cousin ginger, turmeric is a rhizome, or subterranean plant stem. Shop for fresh turmeric the same way you would for ginger: Look for pieces that are plump, firm, and free of soft bits, mold, or cuts. The root should have a bright orange or yellowish color.

A healthy turmeric rhizome will keep for a couple of weeks in your refrigerator. Store it in a produce bag with a paper towel wrapped around the root to absorb moisture and prevent mold.

After cutting fresh turmeric, store it in an airtight container. You can also freeze turmeric. So if you find a nice root at a good price, you can preserve the goodness for up to six months. Just cut it into pieces first, and store them in a freezer-safe bag or container. For bonus points, peel or scrape off the skin, so you have cooking-ready turmeric as soon as you pull it from the freezer. Frozen turmeric is delightful to grate, as long as you remember to stop before adding your fingertips to the recipe.

Dried turmeric, like many other dried herbs and spices, can last up to three years. If you like, you can try your hand at making your own turmeric powder by first drying turmeric in a food dehydrator. After it’s dry, you just break it down in a food processor or blender and store it in a cool, dry place.

How to Cut and Prep Fresh Turmeric

Before using fresh turmeric, wash it well to remove any dirt. Research shows the best way to clean produce of any kind is in a solution of baking soda and water. This not only cleans the item but also helps remove surface pesticides.

Fresh turmeric can stain your hands, cutting boards, clothing, and pretty much anything else it touches. If you aren’t into temporary amber-colored tattoos, you may want to use kitchen gloves when cutting the roots.

Peeling turmeric is optional, but may be a good idea texture-wise since it removes the papery skin. Once peeled (or not; you do you!), the most common ways to prepare it for cooking are grating or thinly slicing the pieces.

Increasing its Bioavailability

While turmeric is a culinary superstar on its own, it’s also a team player with other spices. Pairing fresh or dried turmeric with black pepper increases the bioavailability of its curcumin.

While most of the research on this phenomenon has been conducted on rats, the levels are astounding and probably apply to humans as well.

A 2010 study found that adding pepper to turmeric that was fed to epileptic rats (our view on the use of animals in medical research is here) increased the absorption of turmeric by a whopping 20 times.

Another study (with human subjects) found that 2 grams of curcumin combined with 20 milligrams of piperine (the active component in black pepper) increased the bioavailability of curcumin by 2,000%! As you can see, you don’t need much black pepper to significantly increase the effects of curcumin.

If black pepper isn’t something you routinely add to meals, heat and the addition of fat alongside turmeric (like in FRN’s Creamy Golden Milk below) can also increase curcumin’s absorption — although these two methods are less effective than black pepper.

How to Use Turmeric

If you’d like to use fresh turmeric in a recipe that calls for dried turmeric powder, a one-inch piece of fresh turmeric is the equivalent of one teaspoon of dried turmeric.

Now that you know that, however, what are some of the best ways to use turmeric in your diet? Here are just a few ideas:

• Raw and grated over salads
• Cooked into stir-fries and rice
• Steeped to make tea
• Mixed into drinks like smoothies or golden milk
• As part of a homemade spice blend for curries and other Indian dishes
• In stews, soups, and chilies
• In baked goods
• In sauces, dressings, and marinades
• To color tofu when used as an egg substitute, like in tofu scramble and breakfast hash (pro hint: you need less turmeric than you think)

Turmeric Recipes

Turmeric is a diverse and nourishing spice that is warming, comforting, and nourishing with its earthy flavor and vibrant golden hues. Whether you choose to use fresh or dried turmeric, there is no shortage of creative and delicious ways to enjoy the benefits of this healing spice. Discover some of the best ways to cook with turmeric!

1. Turmeric Tahini Slaw

Turmeric Tahini Slaw is a simple yet creative way to enjoy the healing benefits of turmeric, whether on its own as a crunchy and craveable salad, or as a topping for tacos, burgers, burritos, or grain bowls. There’s plenty of fiber, a cornucopia of colorful veggies, and powerful anti-inflammatory benefits from turmeric — what’s not to love?

2. The Ultimate Immune-Supporting Soup

The Ultimate Immune-Supporting Soup can help you feel well in cold weather and beyond. This savory soup is filled with powerful spices, including turmeric, ginger, and cumin, and alliums, like garlic and leek. Along with herbs and spices, it’s bountiful with cruciferous veggies and plant-based protein, too. Enjoy a big bowlful of this turmeric recipe whenever you need a boost in nutrition!

3. Buckwheat, Tofu, and Broccoli Curry

Hearty, satisfying, and invigorating, thanks to curry spices, plant-based protein, chewy buckwheat, and crunchy broccoli, this dish delivers flavor, texture, and nutrition. Turmeric gives this superfood buckwheat curry a deeply rich golden color (and lots of anti-inflammatory power) that will warm you from the inside out — which may have you glowing from the inside out, too.

4. Saffron Turmeric Rice

Fluffy, fragrant, and full of flavor, Saffron Turmeric Rice is a savory and vibrant fusion of fragrant saffron-infused brown rice. Along with the pure anti-inflammatory goodness of golden turmeric, this recipe creates a delightful rice dish that ranks high in nutrition. It’s also a fun and tasty way to enjoy the healing powers of both saffron and turmeric!

5. Zesty Turmeric Ginger Carrot Cake

Fresh ginger and turmeric bring this wholesome carrot cake to life. These two spices are anti-inflammatory superstars with their phytonutrients gingerol and curcumin, respectively. Heat activates the curcumin in turmeric. But you also have the option of adding a bit of black pepper to the dry ingredients, which has been shown to be most effective in turning on curcumin’s magical powers. Enjoy a slice of this carrot cake with your favorite plant-based milk, and let dessert nourish you!

6. Ginger Turmeric Pineapple Lemonade

Refreshing, yet invigorating and healing — that’s how this soothing Ginger Turmeric Pineapple Lemonade feels as you’re sipping and savoring it. Use fresh ginger and turmeric if you’re able to find them, as they really make a difference in the flavor of the drink. However, ground turmeric and ginger are lovely options as well (and just as healing as fresh). Let this drink comfort you as you’re enjoying a relaxing activity!

7. FRN’s Creamy Golden Milk

If you love a bit of earthiness paired with a creamy texture and a touch of spice, then this golden milk is for you. Sip on this healing tonic in the morning as a replacement for coffee or as a calming beverage before bedtime, preparing your body for deep sleep. One of our favorite ingredients, tahini, gives this golden milk recipe a little extra creamy sweetness and is a great way to absorb the benefits of healing turmeric.

Get Cooking with Turmeric!

Now that you know how to choose, store, and use turmeric, you can welcome this golden spice into your kitchen to transform ordinary dishes into extraordinary culinary creations. Its earthy and somewhat bitter notes, complemented by the magical health benefits of curcumin, make it a valuable spice across various cuisines, from Indian curries to Middle Eastern delicacies.

And when it comes to incorporating turmeric into your culinary adventures, the possibilities are as endless as your imagination. Experiment with turmeric-infused recipes, creating dishes that delight both your taste buds and your well-being.

Tell us in the comments:

• Do you already cook with turmeric? What are your favorite dishes using the spice?
• Have you ever seen fresh turmeric root at your market or grocer? If so, have you tried it?
• Which turmeric recipe will you try next?

Featured Image: iStock.com/Madeleine_Steinbach

Read Next:

• What Is Curry? — And How to Use It in Your Kitchen
• What Is Cumin, and Should You Eat It for Your Health?

The post Terrific Turmeric Recipes: How to Use Turmeric appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

Leprechauns, bagpipes, and shamrocks? St. Patrick’s Day must be near!

The March 17th holiday began as early as the 9th century as a Catholic feast day, paying tribute to the patron saint of Ireland. Today, it’s a worldwide celebration of Irish culture and heritage, often culminating in a St. Patrick’s Day parade or festival.

Food plays an important role in modern St. Patrick’s Day festivities, bringing friends and family together over a shared meal. But most of what many people think of as traditional Irish food typically includes heavy dishes that are high in meat and dairy. And while many Irish families raised animals in addition to farming their own vegetables in previous centuries, according to a 2016 study, the Irish diet was primarily plant-based over 2,000 years ago. Barley bread and other plant foods were the staples, while meat and dairy were “restricted to certain occasions.”

So if you want to add a healthier, plant-focused twist to your shamrock shenanigans, take inspiration from the Iron Age Irish and discover how to make plant-based Irish food — and enjoy trying these seven healthy St. Patrick’s Day recipes!

Traditional St. Patrick’s Day Food

The traditional St. Patrick’s Day meal of recent memory was often Irish bacon (pork joint) and cabbage. In Ireland, pork was more affordable than other meats like beef or chicken. Many families were tenant farmers of the British crown and couldn’t always eat everything they grew or raised. But they did have access to pork.

As the Irish emigrated to the United States through Ellis Island, bacon was replaced with corned beef, which was more readily available at the Jewish delis in New York City. The dish’s popularity and association with the St. Patrick’s Day holiday really took shape in North America during the Great Potato Famine, as Irish immigrants sought to recreate a familiar dish amongst the unfamiliar.

Other dishes associated with St. Patrick’s Day include:

• Irish stew or stobach — a peasant dish that includes root vegetables and mutton or lamb.
• colcannon potatoes — mashed potatoes with greens like cabbage or kale.
• shepherd’s pie — minced meat and vegetables topped with mashed potatoes.
• soda bread — a quick yeast-less bread made with baking soda.

Making Irish Food Plant-Based

While many of these St. Patrick’s Day foods are heavy on the meat, they don’t need to be. In fact, as we’ve seen with the rise in veganism and plant-based meat and dairy alternatives, it’s easier than ever to replace or eliminate animal products altogether. Not only that, but adopting plant-based versions of traditional St. Patrick’s Day meals is better for your health and the planet.

Interestingly enough, Ireland now ranks as the number three country per capita in terms of veganism. One study found that Dublin is the most vegan-friendly city in the world, with over 21% of its restaurants offering vegan options to diners.

So how can you make plant-based versions of Irish recipes at home?

Meat Alternatives

While you can certainly leave out the meat entirely from a recipe, sometimes you do so at the risk of losing a particular texture. One of the best ways to replace meat in Irish recipes is by substituting beans or lentils. Legumes offer a chewy texture similar to meat while also providing an abundance of protein and nutrition. With the right seasoning, tempeh can stand in for bacon or corned beef. And lentils go well in shepherd’s pie because they have a similar color to browned meat.

Plant-based meat alternatives are another option that may get you even closer, from a culinary standpoint, without the saturated fat and harmful dietary compounds like TMAO or nitrates. But they’re processed foods, and for health reasons, you may want to keep them to a minimum.

Dairy Alternatives

Replacing dairy in St. Patrick’s Day recipes is also easier than ever. The variety of plant-based milks available continues to increase, allowing you to sub in almond, soy, oat, or other milks. You can use olive or avocado oil in place of butter, or a store-bought cultured vegan butter like the one from Miyoko’s Creamery. In baked goods like soda bread, you can replace butter with applesauce or nut butter. And you can create vegan buttermilk from apple cider vinegar or lemon juice and plant-based milk.

7 Healthy St. Patrick’s Day Recipes That Are Packed with Plants

Get ready to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day the plant-based way! The flavors of Ireland are known to be humble, wholesome, and comforting, which makes them perfect for a day full of feasting! However you choose to pay tribute to the Emerald Isle and St. Patrick himself, we’re sure these Irish-inspired recipes are a mouthwatering way to celebrate the holiday!

1. Dublin Fog Latte

Robust, malty, and earthy flavors of Irish Breakfast Tea — a unique blend of black tea leaves, mainly Assam and Ceylon — play the lead role in our Dublin Fog Latte. This slightly bitter, intensely flavorful, and lusciously silky latte is a great addition to your morning Irish Boxty or hearty breakfast favorites! Plus, the addition of cashews and banana makes this latte extra creamy, sort of like a festive St. Patrick’s Day sweet cream mocktail… if you catch our drift!

2. Boxty Potato Pancakes

Boxty is a traditional Irish potato pancake that is simple, savory, and ultra-comforting. It’s like a cross between a fluffy pancake and a crispy hash brown. A combination of mashed potatoes, grated potatoes, tangy buttermilk, and whole-food quinoa flour, these light yet hearty pancakes are a humble breakfast offering that is wonderfully delicious!

3. Creamy Colcannon Potatoes

Colcannon is a beloved comfort food dish in Ireland, so much so that a traditional children’s song is dedicated to the delicious decadence of these creamy mashed potatoes. While traditional colcannon is made with generous amounts of butter, cream, hearty winter greens like cabbage or kale, and green onions or leeks, our equally luscious plant-based version is just as creamy, wholesome, and delicious with a few additional nourishing ingredients mixed in! Bonus: The vibrant kale ribboned throughout makes it a standout side on your St. Paddy’s Day table!

4. Hearty Irish Stew

Can any St. Paddy’s day celebration be complete without a bowl of warm and comforting Irish stew? We say, “Níl!”  Hearty Irish Stew is a true stick-to-your-ribs “meat and potatoes” dish, but instead of meat, we used beefy mushrooms and hearty root vegetables! A gentle simmer brings out an intensely flavorful and rich stew that even the pickiest of meat-eaters will love!

5. Corned Chickpea “Beef”

While this may not be exactly like Grandma’s, our Corned Chickpea “Beef” is surprisingly tender and, well, beefy! Plus, it hits all the right flavor notes of the traditional St. Patrick’s Day favorite. Made with chickpea flour and marinated in traditional corned beef spices, these lightly crisped chickpea beef strips are delightful, tasty, and very versatile. It makes an excellent addition to a vegan corned beef hash, corned beef with cabbage, or as a meaty filling for a corned beef sandwich on rye!

6. Corned Beet Reuben

A slightly sweet and tangy twist on a traditional corned beef Reuben is our Corned Beet Reuben. Pickled beets add just the right bite to give this sandwich a unique and delightfully craveable taste. Layered with tart sauerkraut and generously topped with creamy Thousand Island Dressing, these loaded “sammies” make the perfect assemble-and-go sandwich any day of the year!

7. Vegan Shamrock Shake

What better way to celebrate the luck of the Irish than with our naturally sweet and creamy Vegan Shamrock Shake! Vibrant green spinach, cooling peppermint, and creamy frozen banana make a cool, frosty, and velvety plant-based treat that is a festive addition to your holiday celebrations!

Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day the Healthy Way!

Although many traditional Irish dishes are based on meat and dairy, you can easily create plant-based versions of St. Patrick’s Day recipes. In fact, early Irish diets may have been primarily vegan or vegetarian. Eliminating meat or using a meat or dairy alternative is easier than ever and can help you go green without the need for food dye (green beer, anyone?). We hope you enjoy these seven St. Patrick’s-inspired Irish recipes in good health — or, “le do shláinte” as they say in Irish!

Tell us in the comments below:

• Do you plan on making any of these healthy St. Patrick’s Day recipes?

• What are some of your favorite St. Patrick’s Day recipes?

Featured Image: iStock.com/gorchittza2012

Read Next:

• 11 Whole Foods Plant-Based Recipes from Around the World

The post 7 St. Patrick’s Day Recipes That are Great-Tasting and Good for You appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

What Are Mocktails?

Mocktails, or nonalcoholic cocktails, are beverages that look and often taste like regular cocktails, but without the alcohol. In many situations, you can just leave out the alcohol; or sometimes, you might want to replace it with a healthier liquid. Take the classic cocktail, the Moscow mule, which consists of vodka, soda, lime, and ginger. Given that vodka is defined by US law as a distilled liquid “without distinctive character, aroma, taste, or color” (in case you don’t have the entire legal code memorized, you can find the relevant passage in Title 27, Section 5.22), you could pretty much replace the vodka with filtered tap water, and no one looking at the drink would be the wiser.

If you know the recipe for a cocktail and can get the garnishes right, you can create a drink that will fool, if not the drinker, then everyone around them. But instead of drinking a beverage that increases your odds of getting high blood pressure, cancer, depression, anxiety, and liver disease, you can enjoy a beverage that’s actually good for you.

Often, the look and the pageantry of cocktails add to the fun of an occasion. Think of the little umbrellas that often accompany tropical drinks like piña coladas and margaritas. The inclusion of certain fruits and garnishes can locate the drink in a particular place and season, for example, where pineapples grow or in the summertime, when watermelons are in season. But you can get the same festive impact with a mocktail, too. You can create cold mocktails specifically for brunches, summer-themed or tiki get-togethers, and birthday parties. There are even hot winter mocktails that pair particularly well with holiday gatherings and dinners.

Mocktail Benefits (Compared to Cocktails)

Mocktails have many benefits compared to alcoholic cocktails. You can enjoy them without getting intoxicated, for one thing. No need for a designated driver after downing half a pitcher of virgin sangria. And even if you don’t need to drive or operate heavy machinery right afterward, a nonalcoholic drink will enable you to avoid the cognitive impairment that could, say, have you create really long run-on sentences in your blog posts that lots of readers wouldn’t appreciate, and might even complain about in the comments (if you know what I mean).

1. Healthy Mocktails Are Better for You.

Mocktails are generally much healthier than their alcoholic counterparts (although it depends on what you put in them), mainly because they don’t include alcohol! Evidence shows that the consumption of alcohol contributes to a number of chronic diseases, including depression and anxiety, gout, certain types of stroke, hypertension, cirrhosis of the liver, pancreatitis, and several common cancers.

While the alcoholic beverage industry loves to share research that light drinking (defined as one or two servings of alcohol per day) may extend life expectancy, these findings are collapsing under the weight of better-designed studies and better interpretations of the results of previous research.

In a nutshell, previous studies showed that people who abstained from alcohol entirely were less healthy on average than light drinkers. But it turns out that people who had quit drinking because of severe health problems (including a history of alcoholism) were classified as abstainers, meaning that the causal relationship went the other way: Poor health caused people to stop drinking; stopping drinking didn’t cause worse health!

2. Mocktails Support Socializing.

When you swap out cocktails for mocktails, you lose the alcohol, which is a good thing from a health perspective. But you may gain a lot of sugar and natural or artificial flavorings, especially if you order your drink from a bar or restaurant, where hyper-palatability means repeat business.

Which raises the question: why have a mocktail at all? After all, we know that plain water is one of the healthiest beverages. It’s hydrating. It makes up 60% of our bodies, and it has zero calories. Why bother with mocktails?

Humans are very social creatures, which means we notice how others in our “tribe” are behaving similarly or differently from us. If all your friends are clinking their cosmopolitan cocktails to toast the newest Bachelor episode, and you’ve got a glass of water, both you and they might feel a bit odd about it. (Some cultures and military branches are even superstitious about toasting with plain water.) However, ordering a cosmo mocktail, in which the bartender swaps the vodka for club soda, lets you feel included while allowing you to still say no to alcohol.

And mocktails that include garnishes, fun glasses, and drink accessories also let you enjoy a “special” drink that can add to your enjoyment of the festivities at hand.

3. They’re Safe for Children, and You Can Drink Mocktails While Pregnant.

Alcoholic mixed drinks are not safe for children or pregnant women. But without the inclusion of alcohol, mocktails generally are — as long as they don’t replace plain water on a regular basis. There are also plenty of kid-friendly mocktails, especially the sweet and festive ones. Given their potential for high-sugar content, especially if you order one at a restaurant, we suggest that these be reserved for only very special occasions or that you stick with homemade, where you can control the ingredients. It’s also important to be careful about introducing children to drinking culture through colorful drinks topped with toys (the way candy cigarettes were a nicotine-free way to get kids to relate positively to smoking), so parental discretion is advised.

4. Zero Proof Drinks May be Beneficial for Recovering Alcoholics.

There are arguments, both pro and con, on the usefulness of mocktails for those in recovery from alcohol dependence and addiction. On the one hand, the drinks don’t contain alcohol. On the other hand, they may be gateways to environments where a lot of drinking is going on, and where getting buzzed or totally drunk is normalized or even celebrated. What’s more, alcoholics can respond to virgin drinks with a placebo effect, essentially getting drunk on the perception of alcohol.

The bottom line is that if you’re in recovery from alcohol addiction, it may be best to steer clear of settings where alcohol is celebrated in order to protect your sobriety.

Healthy Mocktail Ingredients

As with practically any food or drink, the healthiest and best ones are those you make at home. If you’re the mixologist for the evening, you get to impose your own standard of quality control over ingredients. You can eliminate processed sugars and instead use fruits, fruit purees, and exciting (and heath-promoting) flavors like fresh ginger and cinnamon.

Mocktail bases can start with seltzer, club soda (make your own with the SodaStream!), unsweetened tonic water, freshly squeezed juices, kombucha (which technically does have a small amount of alcohol), and iced fruit teas. In cocktails that typically include cream or other dairy products, like White Russians or Irish coffee, substitute plant milk and vegan cream.

A lot of the charm of the zero-proof cocktail comes from its presentation: In addition to the umbrella, the fancy straw, the large ice cube, the salt rim, or the distinctive glass or mug, you can make your mocktails special with plant-based garnishes.

Healthy mocktail garnishes can include:

• Mint
• Citrus wedges or rinds
• Sage
• Rosemary
• Cherries (not maraschino)
• Olives
• Celery
• Strawberries & other berries
• Pineapple
• Cucumber
• Edible flowers

For a real plant-based twist, serve summer mocktails inside hollowed-out pineapples, watermelons, or coconuts. And to be more environmentally friendly, make sure your straws are all reusable!

7 Healthy Mocktail Recipes

Now that we know about their potential benefits, it’s time to create some easy (and tasty!) mocktails! Here’s a collection of seven plant-based mocktails straight from the FRN test kitchen. Enjoy these refreshing, nourishing, and naturally sweet festive drinks at your next gathering, or relish in them during some much-needed solo time!

1. Pomegranate Sangria

This Pomegranate Sangria captures all the rich, bold, and fruity flavors of a traditional sangria, but without any of the alcohol. Filled with lots of fresh fruit and sweet and smoky spices, this mocktail makes the perfect addition to any festive celebration or a deliciously soothing beverage any night of the week!

2. Plant-Based Eggnog

Our nonalcoholic eggnog is rich, creamy, smooth, and wonderfully nourishing. Plus, it doesn’t actually contain any eggs, yet tastes just as delicious as the traditional version! Thanks to the wholesome magic of plants, you can delight in this luscious mocktail and savor every sip with zero guilt. Serve it at a holiday gathering, share it with a friend on a wintry afternoon, or make your next cozy PJ party for one extra special. No matter how you enjoy it, it will add warmth, cheer, and nourishing self-care to any occasion.

3. Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider

Lift your spirits with this delightful Slow Cooker Cranberry Apple Cider. Made with 100% cranberry and apple juices that are infused with ginger and cinnamon spice, this cider will warm you from the inside out. If you’re sharing with friends and family it’s guaranteed to invite a sense of good cheer — no alcohol necessary! The best part is the aroma that will permeate your home as it slowly mulls!

4. Juice Spritzer

Grab your favorite fruit juice and get ready to have some bubbly fun with this refreshing Juice Spritzer! All you need for this easy mocktail are three simple ingredients and a bit of creativity to unlock your inner mocktail mixologist! Throw in a few sprigs of your favorite fresh herb to make this effervescent delight even more festive!

5. Matcha Mint Lemonade

Quench your thirst with refreshing cucumber, sweet pineapple, zingy lemon, and gently energizing matcha. Matcha Mint Lemonade is bright, lively, and brimming with a wealth of antioxidants and phytonutrient-rich goodness that balances tart and sweet just beautifully. This is another easy and invigorating mocktail that is fresh, fabulous, and fit for healthy sipping and socializing.

6. Bubbly Citrus Mocktail

If tart and sweet is your jam, this easy-to-prepare mocktail is the perfect fizzy, fruity, and festive nonalcoholic drink for you! Pairing freshly squeezed orange and lime juice with a few splashes of cranberry is a flavor combination that is one of a kind. Sparkling water adds just the right amount of effervescence to make this a charmingly light and refreshing beverage.

7. Blackberry Mojito Mocktail

This simple mocktail recipe is the most refreshing drink to savor when the sun is shining and a breeze fills the air. It’s made with juicy blackberries, fresh mint, refreshing lime, sparkling water, and just a touch of naturally sweet date paste. This gorgeous Blackberry Mojito takes just a few minutes to prepare and is perfect for toasting the sweet side of life!

Enjoy the Fun and Festivity of Mocktails

If you’re looking for an alcohol-free way to share a special occasion, a virgin drink like a fun, flavorful mocktail could be the perfect solution. And while bar-created mocktails aren’t usually health superstars, when you make your own nonalcoholic drinks, you can create some pretty healthy, delicious — and fun — memories.

Tell us in the comments:

• Have you ever made mocktails?
• Do you have any favorite healthy mocktail recipes?
• What are your preferred nonalcoholic mixed drinks?

Feature image: iStock.com/GMVozd

Read Next:

• Holiday Meal Planning Tips and Recipes for Healthy & Happy Gatherings
• Alcohol: Its Effects, Risks, Uses, & Potential Benefits

The post How to Create Healthy Mocktails + 7 Nonalcoholic Drink Recipes appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

Malt or soda shops sprang up across the US in the early 1900s as drug stores sought to capture the lunch patronage of nearby workers. Their signature drinks were malted milk, and, on hot days, the “malt” — a mixture of malted milk powder and ice cream.

But there was a problem. When it came into contact with the cold ice cream, the malt tended to clump, creating a yucky paste in the drink. Soda shop attendants had to stir long and vigorously to produce appetizing malts.

Enter a Polish immigrant, Stephen Poplawski, who in 1922 attached small rotating blades to a motor and placed them inside a glass container. He called his machine a mixer “having an agitating element mounted in a base and adapted to be drivingly connected with the agitator in the cup when the cup was placed in a recess in the top of the base.” Luckily, the marketers intervened and named the device a “blendor.”

The blender allowed the malted drinks to not only achieve a uniform consistency but also to froth in ways that customers found delightful. And so the milkshake was born.

Further innovations made the blender appropriate for home use (including safer blades and a tight-fitting lid), and brands such as Hamilton Beach and Waring sold the appliances to a mass market.

So far, we might conclude that the blender didn’t do much for public health, insofar as it encouraged people to consume far more milk and ice cream than they might have otherwise. But there are two notable bright spots in the blender’s contribution to public health.

First, it gave people something nice to drink that wasn’t alcoholic. While Prohibition, which ran from 1920 to 1933, made the consumption of recreational alcohol illegal, it was still possible to get rip-roaring drunk as long as one was willing to patronize a mob-run speakeasy. Soda shops, with their delicious milkshakes, were viewed by temperance activists as allies in the fight against alcoholism.

And most importantly, blenders made possible one of the most delicious, nutritious, and popular delivery systems for plant-based goodness — the smoothie.

All Hail the Smoothie

Smoothies have become a popular “anytime” drink. You can enjoy them as a healthy breakfast, as a snack, or as a post-workout replenisher. Smoothies can be colorful and visually attractive, thanks to the fruits and veggies you can include.

They’re quick and easy to make, thanks to increasingly powerful motors. (I can imagine Poplawski’s wide-eyed amazement at a demonstration of a modern appliance reducing a baseball to debris in under a minute.) And — if you stick to fruits and vegetables and skip the sporting goods — they can taste great.

In keeping with the original blender’s purpose, smoothies can be a pleasant way to consume nutritional supplements, from green powders to ground-up plant protein.

Smoothies are so popular they’ve spawned an industry of commercial smoothie shops, and increasing numbers of restaurants offer smoothies on their menus as well. But many commercially available smoothies are basically sugary drinks full of syrups and artificial additives with a bit of fruit. And some of the super healthy homemade smoothies — “Here, try this amazing blend of frozen kale, raw beets, and wheatgrass juice!” — don’t taste great.

Somewhere in between is the smoothie sweet spot — a blended delight that’s both delicious and healthy. In this article you’ll get tips for striking the balance. Whether you’re a smoothie newbie (smoobie?) or if you’ve been a “blender jockey” for years, you’ll get some tips to help you take your smoothie game to the next level. At the end, we’ll share seven colorful, nutrient-dense smoothie recipes to try out for yourself.

Are Smoothies Healthy?

The answer to this and other key questions of modern philosophy is: Well, it depends. They can be healthy and they can be unhealthy, based on the ingredients you use. The key to healthy smoothies is to stick as much as possible to plant-based foods, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds.

In a world in which few people manage to hit the recommended quota of 5+ servings of fruits and vegetables per day (even when counting french fries and ketchup as veggies), a daily smoothie can help you achieve that level of consumption by 8:00 am.

And unlike juicing, which removes the all-important fiber from fruits and vegetables, blending them preserves the fiber, which can help you feel fuller longer by slowing down digestion. That slowing effect also gives your body more time to absorb the nutrients available in the smoothie.

Fruit and vegetable smoothies also preserve the awesome array of phytochemicals in the plants — the antioxidants and polyphenols that give different fruits and vegetables their vibrant colors and much of their healing powers. Even after blending and storage, smoothies may retain much of their antioxidant activity.

Smoothies made from commercial mixes are often not that healthy, and are processed foods typically high in sugar and low in fiber. For example, one smoothie mix marketed to restaurants as vegan, non-GMO, and “made with natural ingredients” is mostly water and sugar (a whopping 49 added grams per serving, actually), with additional “natural flavors.”

If you do want to take advantage of the convenience of a mix, look for ones that contain no added sugar or other additives, and that have at least one gram of fiber for every five grams of carbohydrate (Dr. Greger’s famous-but-should-be-more-famous 5:1 fiber rule). Still, you can exert the most quality control and avoid unwanted ingredients when you make your smoothies from scratch.

Another smoothie pitfall is the addition of dairy products such as cow’s milk. They’re often added to make the smoothies richer and creamier, but there are plenty of plant-based alternatives that don’t come with the health, environmental, and ethical problems that accompany dairy.

Dairy can also sneak into smoothies in the form of whey protein powders. As mentioned, smoothies are a popular recovery drink following workouts, and many weightlifters and bodybuilders choose to consume protein powders to aid muscle repair following a strenuous session of resistance training. These protein powders can include not just whey from cow’s milk but a host of other unhealthy ingredients. If you want to use a post-workout protein powder, find an organic vegan brand with a short ingredient list (I like the one made by our friends at Complement, linked here).

Many supermarkets now carry refrigerated bottled smoothies, which often come in vibrant and seemingly healthy shades of green or orange or blue. They typically contain lots of sugar and little fiber. And without fiber, protein, or fat, the sugar can wreak havoc on your blood glucose levels. In some cases, these bottled smoothies can contain as much sugar as a can of Coke or a Starbucks Grande Caramel Macchiato.

A study of smoothies available in English supermarkets published in the BMJ found that the typical 15-ounce bottled smoothie delivered 65 grams of sugar (more than double the American Heart Association’s recommended maximum for an entire day). Different brands vary — Bolthouse Farms Superfood Immunity Boost has 47 grams of sugar for 15.2 ounces (and only 1 gram of fiber), while Naked Blue Machine has 76 grams of sugar in 15.2 ounces  (and 3 grams of fiber). Doing a bit more math, the Blue Machine contains over 300 empty calories in the form of sugar.

In short, if you want to avoid sugar spikes and additives, stick to whole foods vegetable-rich smoothies rather than those that have been processed with added fruit juices or other sweeteners.

There’s one more smoothie caveat to talk about here, even if you’re making your own smoothies exclusively from whole plant-based ingredients, and that’s quantity. Blending foods into smoothies may trigger you to consume more calories than you would if you just ate the whole foods that went into the smoothie.

That’s one of the reasons, along with enhanced nutrition, that you should always “chew” your smoothies, which really means to drink and savor them very slowly. Most people consume calories at roughly 10 times the speed in liquid form compared to the same food’s solid state (thanks to the time saved by the blender doing all the chewing for you). So those calories likely won’t have time to hit your body’s “I’m full so I’d better stop eating” receptors.

In other words, consuming these drinks may add hundreds of calories that your body doesn’t compensate for by eating less later. For example, a typical 32-ounce green smoothie might consist of 2 bananas, a cup of frozen pineapple, and 2 cups of frozen spinach. Because the smoothie is liquid, cold, and delicious, you might down it in just a few minutes and still be ready for breakfast soon after. If, however, you were to eat the component ingredients, it might take you half an hour or more — and you might get full before you were done.

So if you’re concerned about weight management, daily smoothies may not be your friend, unless you manage the portion size and drink them slowly. If you’re trying to gain weight and/or build muscle (by, for example, consuming a protein-rich smoothie after working out), they may be just the ticket. (But still, drink them slowly in order to absorb the maximum amount of nutrients.)

How to Make a Smoothie That’s Healthy & Delicious

The first thing you need to become a smoothie superstar is a good blender. The most palatable smoothies tend to be those with the smoothest texture (hence the name), so you want a high-speed blender that can crush ice or frozen foods, as well as finely chop and juice all manner of fruits and vegetables.

Depending on your budget, you can go full premium with a Vitamix, which may end up being the least expensive in the long run thanks to its solid construction and up to 10-year warranty.

A less expensive but still reputable brand, Ninja, makes a variety of blenders and blender systems (blurring the line somewhat between blender and food processor).

And at the low price point end, Oster blenders can handle most of what you might throw at them and have the added benefit of a glass container that won’t add any plastic to your drinks.

Ingredients For Plant-Based & Vegetarian Smoothie Recipes

Fruits add natural sweetness, bright flavor, and color to your smoothies. They get a bit of a bad rap on account of their natural sugar content, but it’s largely undeserved. Fruit juice can be more problematic because it’s been stripped of its fiber. But whole fruits are high in fiber (which slows metabolism) and many other valuable nutrients. Different colors indicate the presence of different families of phytonutrients, so variety is your friend here — smoothies are a great way to “eat the rainbow.”

Examples of smoothie-ready fruits include berries, bananas, citrus fruits, mango, pineapple, cherries, papaya, and apples. If you’re more adventurous, you can add jackfruit or even, if you dare, the wildly controversial durian.

The most common vegetables to add to smoothies include leafy greens, as well as hydrating veggies that taste good raw. Greens and green vegetables such as spinach, kale, cucumbers, celery, lettuce, sprouts, and microgreens are good choices.

If you’re trying to sneak these superfoods into the diets of picky eaters, you have a couple of strategies at your disposal. You can use a base of light-colored fruit such as bananas and pineapples and blend a vibrant green smoothie. Or you can hide the veggies in a darker smoothie tinted and flavored by cherries, berries, or cacao.

Either way can help get dark leafy greens into preschoolers, as science finally discovered in July 2021 in a groundbreaking study. It randomized 3–5-year-olds into a fruit smoothie group versus a fruit smoothie + greens group, and recorded their reactions to and consumption of various smoothies. The researchers concluded that, as the title of the article in Appetite proclaimed, “Preschoolers will drink their GREENS!”

Another adorable testament to kids drinking their greens comes from one of our beloved WHOLE Life Club members, Hayley Gledhill, who discovered a creative way to entice her son to drink a WHOLE Life Club smoothie recipe:

“This was soooooo good! I told my 3-year-old it was dinosaur juice and that it makes you roar when you drink it! He enjoyed drinking his green (dinosaur) smoothie while roaring after each sip! I also added a quarter cup of frozen pureed cauliflower for an extra serve of veg!”

Other veggies that aren’t green but still go great in smoothies include cauliflower (as Hayley mentioned above), beets, and carrots.

To slow down the digestion of sweet smoothies, consider adding healthy sources of fat and protein. Rather than adding whey powder (or throwing chunks of meat into your smoothie), you can get protein from plants, which tend to be much healthier than animal-based sources.

Fat slows down the absorption of the sugars from the fresh fruit, so you can stay full longer. And naturally occurring plant-based fats can also help maximize the absorption of fat-soluble phytonutrients — for example, the vitamin K in leafy greens.

Some smoothie-friendly plant-based fat and protein sources include avocados, cacao, plant-based yogurt, nut and seed butters, seeds, and organic plant-based protein powder. Other super healthy options include chia and flax seeds (you may want to grind them first in a coffee grinder that you dedicate to this purpose, for easier and swifter blending).

You also need to add some liquid to get your smoothie to a consistency fit for drinking rather than laying brick. The more liquid, the less hard your blender’s motor has to work, and the less likely you are to resort to eating it with a spoon.

The universal smoothie solvent is water, but you can also kick up the creaminess with plant-based milk. You might even consider using coffee or tea — check out the Morning Mocha Smoothie recipe below. If caffeine isn’t your thing, a decaf mushroom coffee blend can also lend an interesting flavor and lots of micronutrients to your smoothie.

Finally, you can add flavor, color, and a powerful nutritional punch to your smoothies by including small amounts of fresh herbs and dried spices. Because they’re so concentrated, a little goes a long way. Parsley, mint, or cilantro are among the herbs you can use (though be aware that some people can’t stand cilantro) — just rip off some leaves and add them as you blend. And you can use spices to come up with lots of different flavor profiles. Examples include cinnamon, fresh ginger root, turmeric (plus a dash of black pepper to facilitate absorption), and nutmeg.

Ready for some easy smoothie recipes that will bathe your cells in phytonutrient goodness and please the palates of some of the pickiest eaters in your life? Here are seven of our favorites.

Plant-Based Smoothie Recipes

Whether you’re looking for a fiber- and protein-rich breakfast shakes (Cinnamon Apple Breakfast Smoothie), a not-too-sweet and not-too-savory vegan shake (The Unsweet Smoothie), or a smoothie that will shine on your Instagram page (Autumn Sunrise!), we’ve got you covered. If you’d like the most delicious morning start-me-up, we highly recommend the Morning Mocha Smoothie. The Blueberry Ginger Smoothie might light up your life with its bright and vibrant color, and it can also help protect your heart with its plant-powered nutrients. If refreshing and lively is the name of your game, don’t hesitate to make the Lemon Lime Green Smoothie. Looking for a dessert-like smoothie? Cherry Cheesecake is the one for you!

1. Cinnamon Apple Breakfast Smoothie

Apples and cinnamon go together like peanut butter and bananas. What better way to enjoy these classic and comforting flavors than in this delicious, fiber-filled smoothie? Apples are among the richest sources of fiber thanks to a plant starch called pectin. Found in the skin and flesh of the apple, pectin makes this fruit ideal for blending because it adds a rich texture to smoothies. Combine apples with a few dashes of cinnamon and a few sprinkles of hemp seeds for an energizing and delicious morning or afternoon treat.

2. Morning Mocha Smoothie

“Rise and shine” takes on a whole new meaning with this Morning Mocha Smoothie that serves up enough energy to keep you going and going. The combination of fiber, complex carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats in the oats, dates, and walnuts digests slowly, providing sustainable energy that won’t leave you feeling hungry, lethargic, or like you’re headed for a sugar crash. For an added boost, espresso rounds out the flavor profile with robust and earthy notes to make this an ideal morning elixir.

3. Blueberry Ginger Smoothie

Blueberry is one of the most popular smoothie flavors around, and for good reason. Blueberries offer a bright, delicate, and agreeable flavor that is nourishing to your taste buds and your body. Juicy blueberries offer the right amount of sweetness, phytonutrients, and antioxidant support to give your body the fuel it needs to thrive. Whether you’re new to smoothies or a longtime devotee, this Blueberry Ginger Smoothie is bursting with flavor, brightness, and nutrition all blended up into one beautifully pigmented glass.

4. Autumn Sunrise Smoothie

This smoothie might look too pretty to drink (almost), but your Instagram page can’t have all the fun! The stunning, purple-red vibrancy from the beets, pomegranate, and blood orange comes from phytonutrients that support immune health, cellular health, DNA repair, and cardiovascular health. The orange-yellow hue from pineapple, mango, and carrot has similar benefits. And, compounds from the orange/yellow foods (beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin) are known to improve reproductive health, protect your eyes and heart, and make your skin look and feel rejuvenated. When it comes to a smoothie that can bathe your cells in phytonutrient goodness, this one is a sip above the rest!

5. The Unsweet Smoothie

Not too sweet, not too savory, just the perfect balance. Wholesome fruits, vegetables, and heart-healthy seeds are blended in harmony to create a delightful smoothie experience. Banana, blueberries, and pickled beets (you read that right) are combined with cranberry juice, kale, and creamy plant-based yogurt to make a powerful anti-inflammatory smoothie for those days when you need a little extra plant power.

6. Lemon Lime Green Smoothie

The stand-out stars of this smoothie are lemon and lime, which not only lend a bright and zesty flavor but also have powerful antiviral and antibacterial properties. The citrus fruits — along with pineapple, avocado, and spinach — provide a healthy dose of vitamin C, B vitamins, magnesium, potassium, vitamin A, and vitamin K for a well-balanced light meal or snack any time of the day. This smoothie features eight nutrient-dense fruits, vegetables, and probiotic-rich foods to keep your gut, mind, and soul happy, healthy, and nourished.

7. Cherry Cheesecake Smoothie

Can a smoothie that sounds like dessert be healthy? You bet it can! Cherry Cheesecake Smoothie is a one-stop smoothie shop for when you are craving something decadent but don’t want to sacrifice nutrition. This fruit-based blend melds cherries (which are high in fiber, vitamin C, and antioxidants to fight inflammation), creamy plant-based yogurt (a good source of gut-friendly probiotics), and a surprise guest — miso paste. Miso lends an umami, cheese-like flavor to this smoothie, which makes this recipe one of a kind. Fun fact — “umami” is a Japanese word that roughly translates to “essence of deliciousness.” If that doesn’t tell you how tasty this is, we’re not sure what will!

Boost Your Energy With Smoothies Every Day

Smoothies can be a colorful and delicious way to get a lot of nutrients all at once from some of the healthiest foods on the planet. And they’re a great way, in particular, to get more fruits and vegetables into kids and picky eaters. Smoothies can be healthy or unhealthy, depending on what you put in them. It’s usually best to make them yourself from whole food ingredients rather than buying smoothie mixes or bottled smoothie drinks, which may have lots of extra sugar and additional less-than-healthy ingredients. Enjoy them in moderation — it’s best to include them as part of a balanced diet with a variety of other whole food meals.

Tell us in the comments

• What are your favorite smoothie ingredients? What’s an ingredient you haven’t used yet but want to try?
• Do you have a blender in your kitchen? If so, how often do you use it to make smoothies?
• What smoothie recipe will you make next?

Feature Image: iStock.com/MiodragIgnjatovic

The post How to Make Healthy Smoothie Recipes That Are Nutritious & Delicious! appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

The sandwich was a perfect match for the informal, light lunch typically eaten in Britain around noontime. But there was a problem — dinner wasn’t served until 8 pm, which meant that folks could get pretty peckish around midafternoon.

And that’s where Anna Maria Russell, the Duchess of Bedford and a friend of Queen Victoria, comes into our culinary story. In the 1840s, Russell complained of a “sinkful feeling” in the afternoon, when dinner was still several hours away. To address the problem, she started taking pots of tea and some snacks in her sitting room around 4 pm.

She found this custom so pleasant that she began inviting her friends, raising her social cachet. In the hypercompetitive world of polite society, things escalated quickly, as hostesses began competing for the most splendid, elegant, and lavish affairs. They added fine china, imported teas, dainty finger sandwiches, and, of course, juicy gossip. Et voilà, the modern tea party was born (why am I using a French phrase for an English innovation?).

Why Host a Plant-Based Tea Party?

Even if you’re not into gossip and one-upmanship (and if you are, I’m not judging), you can still enjoy one of the great customs to come out of the Victorian era — an informal gathering of friends and family to sip tea, one of the world’s healthiest beverages, and have fun.

Your tea party can be as large or small as you like. Indeed, some of the most epic tea parties ever have involved a young child and a couple of dolls and stuffed animals. And the rituals of the affair can encourage mindful eating and drinking.

Tea parties also provide a chance to feel fancy. You can pick a theme, set a dress code, and even include music and games. In short, tea parties are a great way to connect with loved ones without having to spend a lot of money and time preparing.

So in this article, we’ll explore some types of teas you can include at your afternoon tea party, what you might add to those teas, as well as what kinds of food to serve for high tea. Then we’ll conclude with a few afternoon tea recipes to give you a head start on your next tea party — gossip optional.

Types of Tea

When traditionalists talk about tea, they usually mean black tea. All black teas come from the same plant, Camellia sinensis. It grows in just a few parts of the globe: China, India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal. I won’t go into the geopolitical history of tea here (trying to keep this one light), but if you’re interested in the wars that were fought over these leaves, check out For All the Tea in China: How England Stole the World’s Favorite Drink and Changed History, by Sarah Rose.

Black Teas

Tea purveyors turn the crushed and dried leaves of Camellia sinensis into different varieties of black tea using the process of oxidation and adding various flavorings. Darjeeling, for example, contains fruity or floral notes, while Earl Grey is flavored with bergamot and/or citrus. Other well-known varieties include English Breakfast, Ceylon, Lapsang Souchong, and Assam.

White Teas

White teas also come from Camellia sinensis, but consist of new buds and young leaves. The buds and leaves are steamed or fried right after picking to stop oxidation, after which they’re dried.

One of the coolest things about white teas is the translations of their Chinese names. White tea names include Silver Needle, which is made from the buds only, Tribute Eyebrow, and Long Life Eyebrow.

Green Teas

Green teas also derive from the same plant. In this case, the fresh tea leaves are lightly heated or steamed, stopping oxidation, then dried. Different greens teas owe their flavor profiles both to the processing method as well as the terroir (the soil, climate, and weather of the specific location where they grow).

Some popular varieties of green tea include sencha, matcha, and genmaicha. This last one, developed in Japan, achieves a “toasty” flavor thanks to the addition of puffed rice or sorghum.

Oolong Teas

Oolong, or “black dragon” teas, are made from whole tea leaves that are semi-oxidized. The level of oxidation and the processing method determines the flavor profile, which can range from earthy to nutty to floral to fruity to sweet.

Herbal Teas

Herbal teas are united by what they’re not; they don’t come from Camellia sinensis, but from any other plant. Ranging from chamomile to peppermint to redbush (South African “rooibos tea”) to literally hundreds of different species, herbal teas can also feature roots (ginger) and barks (cinnamon). They’re favored by drinkers who wish to avoid caffeine.

What to Put in Tea

Once you’ve settled on your choice of tea the next question is, what do you add to it? Purists, and those seeking the greatest health benefits from the beverage, will drink it plain. Not only is tea healthiest on its own, but when you don’t add another flavor you can appreciate the subtle flavors and aromas in the different blends and varieties.

That said, if additions encourage you to drink more tea than you might otherwise, they can be beneficial.

Typical additions to tea are milk and sugar. Originally, milk was used not just to add flavor and reduce bitterness, but to lower the temperature to keep cheap teacups from breaking. Traditionalists still add milk to the teacup first so it doesn’t cool the water too much.

Plant-Based Milk

Milk, however, can negate the cardiovascular health benefits of tea, and cow’s milk poses other risks to your health. Instead, you may want to find a plant-based milk that you like, and that works well mixed with a hot beverage. Oat, soy, and almond beverages are common additions to tea.

Sweeteners

Sweeteners are often added to tea to combat its bitterness and, well, make it sweeter. Back in the days when sugar was a rare luxury available only to the upper classes, and only in small quantities, some viewed it as a tonic substance with health benefits.

Now that it’s clear that sugar is not good for you, and is in fact implicated in many health problems including Alzheimer’s and cardiovascular disease, you may want to use only a small amount, and/or replace it with a healthier sugar substitute. Some alternatives to refined sugar that may go well in tea include stevia, xylitol, monk fruit sweetener, or even small amounts of date sugar, maple syrup, or honey (although it is not considered vegan).

Lemon

One addition that is both traditional and good for you is lemon juice. Iced tea often calls for a wedge or twist of lemon, and the tangy little yellow citrus fruit can pair well with hot teas as well. Adding lemon to your tea can provide not only flavor, but can also increase antioxidant activity due to its vitamin C content, which can contribute additional health benefits.

What to Serve with Tea

Food Revolution Network

We’ve got the liquid part of the tea party sorted, so let’s talk about food. Tea parties can accommodate both sweet and savory foods. Here are some dishes that wouldn’t be out of place at Buckingham Palace — or in your home or yard.

Salads

Salads can provide lots of raw, plant-based goodness without being heavy or filling. Here are a bunch of healthy salad recipes you might want to serve at your next afternoon tea party.

Soups

Soups are great for cool weather tea parties where some warm comfort food would be just the ticket. If you’re looking for some delicious soup ideas to serve at a tea party, these vegan soup recipes will get you started.

Tea Scones

Scones are often included with classic English tea, and were described by the title character in Ted Lasso as being like a muffin “that sucks all the spit out of your mouth.” Harder and more crumbly than muffins, scones definitely call for a beverage of some kind, which may be why they became tea party stalwarts.

Scones, like these Lavender Lemon Poppy Scones, can themselves be sweet or savory, depending on what’s baked into them (dried currants and fresh blueberries or raspberries along with nuts would put them in the sweet category, while herbs, scallions, chili powder, or sundried tomatoes would qualify them as savory scones.)

Traditionally, either type might be served with jams, preserves, or clotted cream (which is as bad for your arteries as the name suggests). Healthier scone spread alternatives include fresh fruit and homemade fruit spreads, like this Strawberry Chia Spread, nut and seed butters, and plant-based nut cheeses.

Vegan and Vegetarian Finger Sandwiches

Finger sandwiches (important legal disclaimer — the name refers to their size and not what’s between the slices of bread) have been a mainstay of dainty tea parties for almost two centuries now. If you feel a strong urge to hold the handle of a teacup while extending your pinkie finger upward at a slight angle, you might also want to gently pinch a petite, triangular tea sandwich between your thumb and index finger and nibble at a corner.

If you’re at a loss for what to put in a healthy finger sandwich, you can pretty much take any of your favorite sandwiches and just make a smaller version. Here are some plant-based sandwich ideas and recipes to get you started.

Cucumber tea sandwiches are a popular choice for afternoon tea. But you don’t have to use bread as the base of your finger sandwich. It’s perfectly normal in royal society to put your toppings and spreads on cucumber slices. And I, Duke of Ocean, hereby give you permission to use other raw veggie slices as well, such as zucchini, fennel, or jicama.

Hors d’oeuvres

Hors d’oeuvres are as easy to make as they are hard to spell. Here’s a guide to some healthy starters and appetizers that will give you ideas for your next plant-based tea party, however fancy.

High Tea Desserts

Finally, you may want to conclude the festivities with some bite-sized, afternoon tea desserts and pastries. The trick to making desserts bite-size is to, well, make them bite-size. For your health, and that of your guests, you may want to keep them dairy-free and avoid refined flour and sugar. Here are some healthier baking ingredient substitutions you can use. Of course, fresh fruit can be the simplest and healthiest tea party dessert of all.

Healthy Afternoon Tea Recipes

Whether you’re looking for an herbal delight that will stimulate your mind (Tea for the Mind and Creativity), an antioxidant-powered beverage that cultivates calm focus (Soothing Spiced Matcha Tea), or a traditional tea that includes some fun experimentation (China Milky Oolong), the tea recipes below are all great choices for your next plant-based tea party. Consider Masala Chai for a soothing spiced tea that will warm your body and your heart. Or, make the Pomegranate White Tea and discover a special treat at the end!

1. Tea for the Mind and Creativity

Tea for the Mind and Creativity is made with herbs that can support a healthy brain. Rosemary, sage, mint, and lemon balm have all been shown to support memory, focus, and other cognitive functions. What’s more, the daily ritual of making this tea can further support the mind by fostering feelings of warmth and comfort.

2. Soothing Spiced Matcha Tea

If matcha green tea is new to you, you’re in for a treat. Theanine, an amino acid in matcha tea, creates a gentle awareness along with a sense of calm. For this reason, matcha tea has been studied for its stress-relieving effects. Matcha tea is also full of antioxidants, namely catechins, that have been shown to be cardioprotective.

3. China Milky Oolong

The milkiness of this tea, which can be loose-leaf or balled, comes from the brewing process of these particular leaves, not from what you might add to it — though a bit of plant-based milk can be a lovely addition. Steeping oolong tea for 2–3 minutes results in creamy notes. Steeping oolong tea for 5–10 minutes results in floral notes. Let us know which you prefer in the comments.

4. Masala Chai

Made with black tea, Masala Chai is steeped with fragrant and healing spices like clove, cardamom, and peppercorns. Feel free to get creative and experiment with your own chai blend, adding more or less of your favorite or not-so-favorite spices.

5. Pomegranate White Tea

Minimally processed white tea is chock-full of polyphenols called catechins, which act as antioxidants, scavenging free radicals. To avoid bitter notes, steep the tea for only 2–3 minutes. The special treat in Pomegranate White Tea is, perhaps not surprisingly, the pomegranate.

Cheers to Your Healthy Plant-Based High Tea

Having a tea party can be a fun way to appreciate one of the world’s healthiest beverages and get together with family and friends. You have lots of teas to choose from, and you can opt for healthier additions to your tea if you include them. Light finger foods served alongside can complement the tea and enhance your time together. We hope you give these afternoon tea recipes a try and include more tea in your life.

Tell us in the comments:

• Do you have a favorite tea party memory?
• What would you like to do for your next tea party? What theme would be fun?
• What’s one new plant-based, afternoon tea party dish you’d like to make?

Feature Image: iStock.com/NadyGinzburg∆m

The post Afternoon Tea: Recipes for a Plant-Based Tea Party appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

Both the shepherd and his flock were dancing up a storm. Even the old buck was leaping like a little kid. The monk asked the shepherd about the fantastic dance party he was witnessing and soon discovered that both man and goats had been feasting on the berries of a nearby coffee bush.

The monk, realizing that he had found the solution to his somnolence, picked handfuls of berries, stuffed his pockets, and continued on his journey. When he returned to the monastery, he reconstituted the now-dried berries by boiling them and drinking the resulting liquid.

As a result, this particular monk became a model of energetic piety, and it wasn’t long before the other monks were also using the wondrous bean to power their own spiritual quests. And that, I’d like to think, is the origin story of the world’s most popular morning drink. And since you won’t find it disproven in any coffee history books, it just might be. Who knows?

Morning Beverage as Ritual

And yet, as popular as coffee remains, other options for morning drinks also abound. Even folks who skip breakfast typically drink something in the morning. And what you choose to drink can influence the rest of your day, as well as your long-term health. Consuming a healthy beverage can be an important part of a suite of positive morning habits and rituals.

So let’s take a look at a number of different beverages you can enjoy in the morning to support your health, mood, and energy. Then we’ll end with seven different drink recipes for you to try.

Consider the Purpose of Your Morning Drinks

In his mega-bestseller, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey advised readers to “Begin With the End in Mind®” (Habit 2). Given that many of us begin the day with our cheeks pressed into drool stains on our pillows, that might be a bit of a tall order first thing. But as we choose our morning routines, it’s a good mindset.

So what do you want to get from your morning beverages? Here are some possible answers.

Drinks That Give You Energy in the Morning

If you jump out of bed in the morning quivering in anticipation of the day ahead, just bursting with irrepressible energy, you are very much in the minority. In fact, surveys suggest that almost two-thirds of Americans say they rarely wake up feeling rested and energized. It makes sense, then, that many people want a burst of energy in the morning, which is one reason caffeinated beverages are so popular.

You might begin your day with a beverage to get your motor running, aid with concentration and focus, and boost your mood. While coffee is the poster child for wake-up drinks — and can offer significant health benefits — coffee alternatives can also increase your energy. Some, like black and green teas, coffee-mushroom blends, and commercial energy drinks, also provide caffeine.

But caffeine isn’t for everyone, and not everyone reacts well to it. One person’s “This is a pleasant pick-me-up” may be another’s “Why is my heart thundering like the last lap of a NASCAR race?” So you may want to start some (or all) of your days without caffeinating.

Energy Drinks with Synthetic Caffeine

Also, some drinks with added caffeine are not the healthiest breakfast drinks. Many provide synthetic caffeine, a substance first created by Monsanto (now Bayer) that appears to behave differently than its natural counterpart. Your body absorbs and metabolizes synthetic caffeine faster, which can lead to a quicker spike in energy, as well as a faster and more dramatic crash afterward. And other ingredients in so-called energy drinks, including white sugar and artificial flavors and colors, are cause for concern as well.

(Most of the caffeine that’s used in the beverage industry — for drinks like Red Bull and Rockstar, as well as Coca-Cola and Pepsi — is synthetic caffeine.)

Coffee Alternatives

If you’re not partial to caffeine, and are wondering what to drink instead of coffee or tea in the morning, some energizing alternatives include chicory root and maca. Chicory root coffee, a New Orleans staple, comes from a root that’s related to dandelion as well as sharp salad greens like radicchio, frisée, and endive. (Bonus points for wondering if you should pronounce it “en-dive” or “on-deeve” in your head just now. The answer, according to the canonically authoritative Endive.com website: “en-dive” is for curly endive, the disheveled-looking leafy variety, while the elegant “on-deeve” is reserved for the smooth, tightly packed Belgian endive variety.)

Chicory root has sometimes been added to coffee as a tastes-somewhat-like-it filler to help people extend their supply of the more expensive bean. In addition to water, warmth, and taste, chicory root is a rich source of inulin, a kind of insoluble prebiotic fiber that your beneficial gut bacteria absolutely adore. Long prized as an herbal remedy, chicory root’s health benefits have begun to attract scientific attention as well.

Chicory root’s bitter taste can wake up your appetite and trigger the secretion of bile. At the same time, it has also been used to counter the stimulant effects of coffee, as it can induce relaxation and calm in those who consume it. (That sounds like the best of both worlds to me!)

Another plant that makes a fine morning pick-you-up beverage is maca. This root from the cruciferous family, originally from the Andes, has become popular since rumors of its aphrodisiacal properties began circulating on the internet. While this purported effect may not be entirely welcome at 7:30 in the morning when you’re trying to wake up, get the kids dressed and fed, and hit the freeway — or home office desk — by 8:15, there’s more. Maca may also improve mood and brain function, both of which can come in handy when your twins demand an all-potato-chip breakfast, and you are wondering what you did with your keys. (Not that I would know anything about that!)

Healthiest Breakfast Drinks to Hydrate You

Given that most Americans are chronically dehydrated, drinking water at any time of the day is often a good idea. And, since most of us start the day by releasing water from our bodies after a night of breathing and sweating away moisture, the morning is a perfect time to rehydrate.

Many people even wake up feeling dehydrated. A number of things can exacerbate the body’s nightly water loss, including breathing dysregulation (like snoring, mouth breathing, and sleep apnea), night sweats, an over-warm bedroom, hormonal imbalances, and side effects of common meds, such as antidepressants.

Even in the absence of these factors, it’s a good idea to hydrate when you first wake up, especially if you exercise in the morning. Dehydration can cause dry mouth, malaise, foggy thinking, drowsiness, and even dizziness throughout the day. So if you want to perform at your highest level, both mentally and physically, make sure you replace any fluids you’ve lost during the night.

Plus, there’s evidence that water consumption tends to reduce the intake of calories, sugar, and saturated fat — so, bonus!

Drinking Water (or Broth) in the Morning

Plain water is a good place to start. One way to decrease the odds of dehydration first thing is to have drinking water accessible and visible right when you get up. A water bottle, tall glass, or mason jar on your bedside table can serve as a visual cue to drink as soon as you wake. Alternately, set your drinking water on the bathroom counter and drink as soon as you’re done peeing (or do both simultaneously and imagine you’re a straw — I won’t judge).

In addition to pure water, you may want to have some vegetable broth in the morning (which may already have electrolytes like sodium and potassium in it), or add electrolytes to your water. (If you’re a fan of the movie Idiocracy, you’ll smile every time you hear the word.) After all, when you sweat, you lose electrolytes in addition to water. If you like, you can create a homemade electrolyte drink, or add slices of fruit to water.

(Sidenote: My favorite “first thing” morning drink is a tablespoon of Purality Health’s Curcumin Gold mixed into a glass of water. It’s an anti-inflammatory powerhouse, and tastes pretty good, too.)

Healthy Morning Drink Ideas to Kickstart Your Metabolism

Drinking enough fluids in the morning can jumpstart your metabolism, which helps manage your appetite and weight. Make sure to avoid sugary drinks that can cause blood sugar fluctuations and contribute to food cravings throughout the day.

Even plain drinking water can contribute to reductions in weight and body fat. To further enhance these effects, some people add a little bit of apple cider vinegar to their morning glass of water.

We’ve seen that chicory root can get the digestive juices flowing thanks to its compounds that our taste buds find bitter. Another way to boost metabolism and reduce cravings is to add some plant-based protein to your morning beverage. No, I’m not suggesting floating tofu cubes in your morning joe. But you can add nuts, seeds, or nut or seed butters to smoothies and shakes.

There are also compounds in some herbal or “fasting” teas called catechins that promote satiety. Green tea, for example, contains a catechin called epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) that appears to decrease levels of ghrelin, an appetite stimulant gut hormone.

Get Vital Nutrients in the Morning

Water is great, and so are electrolytes, but why stop there? There’s a world of awesome nutrients out there, and drinking your fruits and veggies can get them inside you where they can do good things. Fresh juices and smoothies are wonderful and tasty delivery systems for vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and many other valuable phytonutrients.

Green smoothies pack a particularly powerful nutritional wallop, as the blending appears to increase the bioavailability of phytochemicals found in plant foods. And with smoothies, unlike juices, you get fiber as well. To aid in the absorption of some nutrients and prevent later blood sugar crashes, you can add healthy fats like avocados, nuts, seeds, or nut or seed butters. And some teas can also contribute antioxidants to your diet. That EGCG, which as we’ve seen is a catechin and not a New York City punk music club from the 80s, also helps prevent free radicals and so protects your cells from damage.

Relax with a Morning Beverage

What if you don’t want or need a burst of energy first thing in the morning? You can also drink a relaxing hot beverage while you listen to Gregorian Chants, Andean flute music, or the soundtrack of a Wes Anderson movie.

Golden milks and adaptogenic elixirs can be especially comforting in the morning. They provide warmth and comfort on a cold day. And teas in particular can stimulate the production of feel-good neurotransmitters in the brain.

What to Drink in the Morning

Let’s put our morning beverage options in one place. As you can see from this impressive list, you’ve got a lot of choices.

Types of morning drinks include:

• Coffee and coffee drinks
• Tea and tea drinks
• Caffeine alternatives
• Adaptogenic elixirs
• Smoothies
• Plant-based milks
• Golden milks
• Vegan milkshakes
• Water (with or without additions like apple cider vinegar, herbs, or fruit slices)
• Juices
• And vegetable stocks and broths deserve an honorable mention, too!

Recipes for Healthy Morning Drinks

Finding a beverage to suit your morning personality could be fairly simple with the options below. Food Revolution Network’s Creamy Golden Milk can add some groundedness to complement natural, early morning energy. Or, swap out your coffee for a more delicate caffeine boost with the Soothing Spiced Matcha Tea.

If you’re the DIY type, then jump to Sweet and Nutty Oat Milk with Cinnamon Spice to experience a sense of accomplishment first thing. For a vibrant visual energy boost that has natural nitrates to stimulate circulation, make (and drink!) the Beet Carrot Turmeric Juice. For a fiber-fueled morning and to keep things running smoothly, turn to the Creamy Kale Pineapple Smoothie. And for mindful creatives, the Tea for the Mind and Creativity is made for you!

Finally, FRN’s potent Fire Cider is meant to be enjoyed as a tonic and not for the faint of heart. Mix it with water for a morning hydration beverage with immune-supporting benefits.

1. Food Revolution Network’s Creamy Golden Milk

If you’re the get-up-and-go type who jumps out of bed easily in the morning but you want a grounding drink to help balance your natural energy, then Food Revolution Network’s Creamy Golden Milk might be an ideal choice. In addition to enjoying this drink as a morning beverage, we encourage you to take your time with it — sip and savor the earthy creaminess while feeling the nutrients work their way toward your cells and soothe your soul along the way.

2. Soothing Spiced Matcha Tea

Looking to replace those java jitters with something that offers sustained energy without coffee’s sometimes less-than-pleasant side effects? Matcha tea to the rescue! Starting your day with Soothing Spiced Matcha Tea provides calm, lasting energy support and a gentle sense of awareness and focus. A warning, from experience: The feel-good vibes are captivating, and you might not want to start your day without this healing blend of matcha, turmeric, and cinnamon spice ever again!

3. Sweet and Nutty Oat Milk with Cinnamon Spice

If you want to feel empowered in the morning by making your own creamy (plant) milk beverage from scratch, then Sweet and Nutty Oat Milk with Cinnamon Spice is your new morning mate. This easy-to-make drink tastes divine, eliminates packaging, and saves on costs while encouraging a sense of peaceful relaxation.

4. Beet Carrot Turmeric Juice

Not only will the beautiful and vibrant array of colors in this Beet Carrot Tumeric Juice help to wake you up, but you’ll also enjoy an anti-inflammatory explosion of flavor and nutrients! Don’t have a juicer? No problem! Blender instructions for this power-packed juice are provided as well.

5. Creamy Kale Pineapple Smoothie

Like to start your day with plenty of fiber (who doesn’t!)? Look no further than this Creamy Kale Pineapple Smoothie that is rich in prebiotic fiber from bananas, as well as a combination of soluble and insoluble fiber from all of the plant ingredients. It’s also brimming with vitamin C (pineapple), carotenoids (kale), and omega-3s (chia seeds) for a well-rounded smoothie that can support immune, eye, and brain health.

6. Tea for the Mind and Creativity

Herbs can have seemingly magical effects, from supporting the immune system to fighting inflammation to boosting cognitive function. Rosemary, sage, mint, and lemon balm have all been shown to support memory, focus, and other cognitive functions. What’s more, steeping them together as a tea is a wonderful way to enjoy a flavorful beverage that hydrates and heals with every sip. Make a large batch for the week; then enjoy it on ice or warm it on the stove as a part of your morning ritual.

7. FRN’s Fire Cider

After you’ve hydrated in the morning with one to two glasses of water, enjoy an ounce of Food Revolution Network’s Fire Cider, which includes immune-supporting ginger, turmeric, onion, garlic, and horseradish root. These root vegetables have their own unique phytonutrients that contribute to their growth underground and to your health when consumed. This invigorating tonic is sure to wake you up — naturally! If drinking it solo isn’t for you, try mixing it with a glass of water for a morning hydration beverage with immune-supporting benefits.

Start Your Day with a Healthy Breakfast Beverage!

Waking up with a healthy morning beverage can contribute to your overall health and well-being and help set the tone for your day. What you drink matters. Depending on your needs and goals, there are many drinks to consider.

So tomorrow, when you arise from slumber, consider the different types of morning drinks — and what they can do for you. You may want to add some variety to your morning by giving one of these delicious and healthy recipes a try.

Tell us in the comments:

• What are some of your go-to morning beverages?
• What are some options you’d like to add to your morning routine?
• Which morning drink recipe will you try next?

Feature Image: iStock.com/Moyo Studio

Read Next:

• 10 Healthy Breakfast Ideas to Start Your Day Off Right
• The 6 Healthiest Beverages You Should Be Drinking Now

The post Healthy Morning Drinks to Start Your Day Off Right appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

Does getting 10 servings a day of fruits and vegetables sound like a tall order? For many of us, it can be. In fact, most Americans consume fewer than three servings a day. If you’re not getting that magic 10, there are a few things you can do. One, of course, is to make an effort to add portions of fruits and vegetables to your diet. You can substitute fresh fruit for sugary or salty baked snacks, for example, and prioritize potatoes and green beans over steak and waffles on your dinner plate. But even with the best of intentions, it can be a challenge to consume all those servings of fruits and veggies day in and day out.

That’s where juicing and blending can ride to the rescue. Drinking is often quicker, easier, and more convenient than eating. Putting your produce through a juicer or blender can be an effective way of getting more of those daily servings into your body, where they can protect you from disease and assist you in achieving vibrant health.

If you’re a picky eater who grew up on animal-derived and highly processed foods, juicing and blending can be great ways of getting the benefits of plant foods without having to really engage with them in terms of taste or texture. A brand new study found that even preschoolers will consume dark green leafy vegetables if they’re blended into green smoothies where the taste of the greens is disguised by sweet fruit. And juicing, in particular, can be a nutrient concentrator: the vitamin and mineral content of one cup of carrot juice is almost equivalent to that of five cups of chopped carrots. (That’s a lot of carrot munching!)

Juicing and blending are obviously efficient ways of converting mounds of plant food into easy-to-consume portions. But when it comes to blenders vs juicers, what are the pros and cons of each? Is juicing or blending good for you? And are there downsides to all that processing? What’s the difference between the two? And what are the best kinds of juicers or blenders for your needs?

Benefits of Blending vs Juicing

There are some documented health benefits to blending and juicing. For one thing, both blenders and juicers increase the bioavailability of phytochemicals from many raw plant foods by reducing the size of the food particles and increasing their surface area. One study of Korean kernel fruit (apples, pears, persimmons, and mandarins) found that blending increased their antioxidant properties while juicing increased vitamin C bioavailability. Of course, the best way to reduce the size of the food that makes it into your stomach is to eat slowly and chew thoroughly, but for many of us, that’s a challenging (and time-consuming) habit to adopt. 

The more phytochemicals we eat, the lower our disease risk, especially for conditions like heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.  

Because blending and juicing typically use raw produce, they can provide significantly more of certain phytochemicals that degrade when cooked. For example, isothiocyanates are phytochemicals found in cruciferous veggies that have powerful anti-cancer effects. We absorb more isothiocyanates from raw than cooked veggies, so we can get a max dose by blending or juicing our cabbage, cauliflower, watercress, and turnips rather than cooking them.

Juicing for Heart Health

There’s good evidence that drinking fruit and vegetable juices can protect specifically against heart disease, primarily through lowering blood pressure and improving the blood lipid profile (basically, lowering LDL cholesterol and triglycerides). 

Juicing for Gut Health

Juicing may also benefit the gut microbiome. In 2017, a team at the UCLA medical school took 20 healthy adult volunteers and gave them nothing but vegetable and fruit juice for three days, after which they followed their regular diets for two weeks. At the end of the study, there was a significant increase in the populations of “good” gut bacteria, including the ones associated with weight loss, increased vasodilation (opening of blood vessels) through nitric oxide production, and reduced free radical production from blood lipids. A triple win, from just three days of juicing!

Blending and Juicing for Inflammation

There’s some evidence that plant-rich smoothies may help reduce inflammation associated with autoimmune diseases. One pilot study that’s currently underway is including a morning smoothie as part of a protocol to decrease pain and joint swelling in people with rheumatoid arthritis.

Pros and Cons of Blenders and Smoothies

So far we haven’t really differentiated between blenders vs juicers and blending vs juicing. In fact, they’re both quite different. Let’s look at the pluses and minuses of blenders and blending first.

Pros of Blending

Both juicing and blending take a food and pulverize it. Juicers separate the juice from the pulp, so the pulp can be discarded. But blenders make use of everything. And that can be a good thing because the main component of the pulp that juicers discard is fiber. Blended fruits and vegetables retain all their fiber, a key nutrient for healthy digestion and chronic disease prevention. Fiber is precious, especially considering that fewer than 5% of all Americans consume the recommended daily amounts of fiber.

The pulp that juicers waste and blenders preserve also provides an abundance of flavonoids, which are a potent class of phytonutrients. One study compared the phytonutrient content of blended vs juiced grapefruit and found that blended grapefruit, with both juice and pulp, contained seven times the amount of naringin, a potent flavonoid that fights cancer and inflammation, and may be effective in treating type 2 diabetes and other metabolic diseases.

If you’re watching your weight, smoothies are more filling than juices, thanks to all those fibrous parts of the fruits and vegetables that trigger those “that’s enough, thank you” signals from the stretch receptors in your stomach. One way to make smoothies more satiating is to add some form of healthy fat, like avocado, seeds, or nuts. The fat will slow down the absorption of the sugars in the fresh fruit, so you can stay full longer, and not suffer from a sugar spike and subsequent crash.

And maybe it shouldn’t matter as much as it does, but blenders are definitely easier to clean than juicers. They don’t have lots of parts to disassemble, scrub, dry, and reassemble. And if you’ve ever watched a Vitamix demo at Costco, you know about the trick where you fill the dirty blender container with soapy water, snap on the lid (don’t forget the lid, unless you like soap suds on your ceiling!), and run the blender for 15 seconds to remove all food particles and stains.

Cons of Blending

While they aren’t prone to spiking your blood sugar nearly as much as juices, sweet smoothies can still raise blood glucose levels and contribute to metabolic syndrome. Since smoothies are liquid meals, we can consume them too quickly, and therefore take in excess calories before we’re aware of being full.

Additionally, humans evolved to chew our food well and slowly. The fruits, roots, and leaves our ancestors ate were far more fibrous than the gentle peaches, plums, and apples that we’re all used to. Smoothies reduce the need for chewing even further, which can mean weaker masseter muscles and underdeveloped oral cavities, especially in babies and small children. Nitric oxide, the vasodilator chemical that you get from leafy greens, gets metabolized by enzymes and bacteria in your saliva. Skip the chewing, and you reduce your intake of this wonderful nutrient.

If you make your own smoothies, you can maintain complete control over the quality of ingredients they’re made of. But that’s not true if you drink commercially blended smoothies from restaurants, airport kiosks, or supermarket beverage cases. Those products, designed to appeal to consumer taste buds, may contain unwanted ingredients like refined sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and natural and artificial flavorings or colorings. And they rarely if ever use organically grown fruits or vegetables.

Blender Types & Recommendations

Are you up for blending? If so, you’ll need — drum roll, please — a blender. There are several different styles that will fit different needs and budgets.

Stick Blenders

The least expensive, smallest, and least powerful is the immersion or “stick” blender. These blenders are best for sauces and dips, and for pureeing hot ingredients like soups, that you don’t want to blend in a container while boiling hot. If you will be using it for hot items, make sure the parts that contact the food are metal and not plastic, to avoid leaching toxins into your meals. One well-reviewed model is the KitchenAid Variable Speed Hand Blender.

Single-Serving Blenders

Slightly bigger and more powerful, there’s the single-serving or personal blender. This style typically comes with a container that you can drink from since the blade is housed in the base. These also come with lids, so you can take your smoothie on the go, as well as other accessories like whisks and extra chopping blades for onions and other veggies. The Hamilton Beach Personal Blender is an inexpensive model with strongly positive reviews.

Kitchen Blenders

Next in the pecking (or blending) order is the regular old kitchen or full-size blender – the one you picture when you think “blender.” These babies sit on the countertop and can handle most blending tasks. One of my favorite things about them is the creative labels for the various settings: blend, grind, pulverize, liquify, crush, beam me up (just kidding about that last one). As longtime household staples, they vary widely in power, materials, and quality of the build. Make sure you get one whose motor can handle whatever you plan to throw at it. If your smoothies will involve ice or frozen fruit, look for a higher wattage on the motor, and check online reviews for durability.

Also, I highly recommend choosing a model with a glass, not plastic, container. The Oster Pro 1200 checks all the boxes and even has a dual-direction blade that allows it to reverse, clear up jams, and optimize your blending experience (hey, maybe I’ve missed my calling as a marketer for blenders).

Specialty Blenders

Finally, the sovereign of the blender world is the Specialty or Combo blender. These workhorses (is there a more vegan word for that?) can easily blend frozen stuff — one brand even advertised its prowess by destroying iPhones, iPads, and camcorders in its whirring blades. (As fun as that sounds, I don’t recommend it.) One top-of-the-line specialty blender is the ever-popular Vitamix. The latest models feature smart technology, wider and shorter containers (so they finally fit under kitchen counters), and quieter motors. While you might get sticker shock if you’re used to blenders in the $30-$100 dollar range, Vitamix blenders are probably the best overall value when you factor in the lifetime cost of ownership.

A more recent entrant to the high-end market is Ninja, whose high-end models feature cool “blade towers” and presets for smoothies, frozen drinks (umbrellas optional), and even mixing dough.

Pros and Cons of Juicers and Juice

Juicing is a process that extracts water and nutrients from produce while discarding most of the fiber. As with blending, there are pros and cons to this process.

Pros of Juicing

Juicing concentrates the nutrients, as the vast majority of the vitamins and minerals in fruit are typically in the juice — not the pulp and fibrous material. As a result, juicing can increase the quantity and bioavailability of antioxidants like vitamin C for better absorption. Also, it’s easier for people with impaired digestion to assimilate nutrients in juices than in whole fruit or blended smoothies.

Because fiber binds to the sugars in fruits and vegetables and slows down their digestion, juicing can provide a quicker dose of energy. While most of us don’t need a sugar rush, athletes who will be metabolizing lots of calories in a short time can benefit from drinking juice right before an event. Beet and cherry juices, in particular, have been investigated as performance enhancers in athletes.

Beet juice appears to aid the long-distance runner. In one study, elite runners in their 20s were instructed to run to exhaustion on a treadmill, given a red juice supplement for 15 days, and then asked to repeat the treadmill test. Those given beet juice achieved “substantial improvements in the time to exhaustion” compared to those drinking the placebo. Aside from the compelling results, I want to know how you create placebo beet juice with no beets in it!

Not to be outdone by beets, tart cherries also improved endurance in athletes, sometimes when given as little as an hour and a half before an event. I hope the World Anti-Doping Agency keeps beets and cherries off its banned substances list!

Cons of Juicing

Juicing isn’t all moonlight and roses, however. As we saw, juicing removes most of the fiber, which means rapid absorption of sugar into the bloodstream. As a result, you may experience sugar spikes, which can tax the insulin system, followed by sugar crashes, which can include symptoms as varied as fatigue, irritability, lightheadedness, dizziness, and anxiety, among many others.

Juice also may not be as satiating as solid food or blended food, which can lead you to consume more than you would otherwise. That can be a problem, especially with juices that are high in sugars, as they can pack a lot of calories into a small (and rapidly consumed) volume.

Consider apple juice: you can drink a cup in a few seconds. While it would take you a lot longer to consume the equivalent number of medium-sized apples (three, as it turns out). And you’d probably get full somewhere on your second apple. While a cup of juice won’t even tickle your “full-o-meter.”

Also, there’s a big difference between commercial juices and fresh, raw juice. Commercial juices, like commercial smoothies, may contain unhealthy ingredients. Commercial fruit juice, in particular, turns into little more than junk food when it’s pasteurized and filtered. Vegetable juice (with the arguable exception of carrot juice, which is actually still pretty sweet, with nine grams of sugar per cup) doesn’t suffer the same fate and can be a potent way to absorb nutrients swiftly.

Juicing also wastes a lot of valuable nutrition. The pulp that gets thrown away when you clean your juicer includes fiber and other nutrients that bind to it. 

And finally, juicers are often messy and take a fair amount of time and effort to clean thoroughly.

Juicer Types and Recommendations

Just as with blenders, there are various kinds of juicers. The three types competing for your dollars and counter space are auger/low-speed, centrifugal, and masticating juicers.

Auger Juicers

The auger/low-speed models spin, as you might have guessed from the description, juice slowly. This keeps the heat low, which means your juice will be truly raw. They have a pretty small footprint on your counter and eject their pulp to the side. Nama makes a fantastic version of this type of juicer that yields up to 60% more juice from the same amount of ingredients than traditional high-speed juicers. The J2 gets excellent reviews, and you can save 10% on your purchase with promo code FRN.

Centrifugal Juicers

More common, and less expensive, are the centrifugal juicers, which essentially extract juice with a combination of grating and rotating really fast. The pulp goes down, while the lighter liquid gets spun out like a kid on a Gravitron carnival ride. Because of the quick processing time, these are the least efficient at getting the maximum nutrition from your produce. A quality model is the Omega J4000 High-Speed Pulp Ejection Juicer.

Masticating Juicers

Next, there are the masticating juicers, which feature a horizontal auger that crushes and grinds the produce under great pressure, extracting perhaps the maximum nutrition of any of the types. The Omega Juicer NC900HDC is pricey, but tends to last, and includes a 15-year warranty. The Jocuu Masticating Juicer offers a more budget-friendly option.

Manual Juicers

Finally, you can also find manual juicers specifically for citrus fruits. One example is the Gourmia Citrus Juicer, which uses leverage to add force to your natural strength. The company claims that its juicer can handle pomegranates as well as oranges, lemons, and grapefruits.

Blender and Juicer Recipes

Are you a juice-lover or a smoothie pro? And, do you prefer a little sweet or mostly savory? Whichever your preference, you should find a recipe that fits your style below. If you have a juicer, hooray! It’s time to put it to use with the Green Goodness Smoothie and Carrot Beet Ginger Juice. Don’t have a juicer? No problem! Instructions for juicing with just a blender and nut-milk bag or tea towel are provided.

Smoothie folks, choose from the Where to Get Your Protein Blue Smoothie, the energizing Pineapple Matcha Smoothie, or for savory smoothie lovers — the Salad Smoothie! Let us know your favorite juice and smoothie blends below.

1. Where to Get Your Protein Purple Smoothie

Worried about meeting protein needs on a plant-based diet? It’s actually pretty simple to get plenty of protein, especially when you’re eating whole plant-based foods like hemp, almond butter, and flax meal. Add some blueberries for a pretty purple hue, and you’re on your way to health through a tasty smoothie!

2. Pineapple Matcha Smoothie

Looking for a morning boost? Pineapple Matcha Rise ‘N Shine Smoothie is the perfect way to start the day with its refreshing and energizing ingredients. From the iron-rich spinach to the antioxidant-filled pineapple to the theanine-packed green tea, this smoothie will give you sustainable nutrients for lasting energy and optimal health.

3. Salad Smoothie

Move over fruit-smoothie lovers, it’s time for us salad-smoothie lovers to shine! Using avocado as the creamy base, cucumber for deep hydration, and a blend of lime, mango, and shallots for a pop of flavors you’re going to love. Add less water to make a smoothie bowl (see Chef’s Notes) or more water to make it a soothing beverage.

4. Beet Carrot Turmeric Juice

This juice is almost too pretty to drink with its vibrant magenta color from the beets. Betalains, the compounds that give beets their color, have been shown to provide antioxidant and anti-inflammatory support. It also gives everything it touches color so be warned — beets and turmeric both stain! Carrots are chock-full of carotenoids and turmeric is packed with curcumin. Both of these compounds help fight inflammation. See Chef’s Notes to learn how to best absorb the nutrients from this naturally sweet juice.

5. Green Goodness Juice

If you want a juice that is refreshing and nourishing to supplement your high-fiber diet, then look no further than this Green Goodness Juice. Made with kale, celery, lemon, ginger, and cilantro (or parsley if you’re in the anti-cilantro camp), this juice is like a ray of sunshine for your body. It’ll help you shine your brightest!

Blenders vs Juicers — Now You Know

Whole plant foods are wonderful. We could all stand to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. And blending and juicing them can help you get more of them. While you do miss out on the benefits that come from chewing —  and if you’re juicing, you also miss out on the fiber — both blending and juicing provide easy ways to get valuable nutrition, especially antioxidants. And they can also be fun and flavorful ways to change up what you’re eating. Each has advantages and drawbacks, but whether you’re Team Blender or Team Juicer, both can play a part in contributing to a healthy, convenient, and delicious life.

Tell us in the comments:

• Which do you prefer, juicing or blending?
• What’s your go-to blender vs juicer?
• What’s your favorite blended or juiced recipe?

Feature image: iStock.com/Moyo Studio

Read Next

• Eating The Rainbow: Why Eating a Variety of Fruits and Vegetables Is Important for Optimal Health
• Fruit Has Fantastic Health Benefits, But Can You Eat Too Much Fruit?
• How to Eat More Vegetables (and Like It!)

The post Blenders vs Juicers: Pros & Cons of Blending and Juicing appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

If you want a chance to unwind, there are few things more comforting and satisfying than slowing down to enjoy a warm, relaxing beverage. Perhaps this is why many of us start our day with coffee and end it with herbal tea. Or you might have fond memories of hot chocolate after ice skating on a pond on a clear winter day. And while warm drinks are a natural fit during cold weather, imbibing a warm and relaxing drink can do much more for us than take the chill off our fingers and lips. In this article, I’ll share the benefits of warm drinks (a couple of which may surprise you), and talk about some of the healthiest ones you can choose, including five recipes for when you need to slow down and unwind.

Why Drink Warm Drinks

Let’s start with the obvious: warm drinks warm you up when it’s cold. You probably don’t need me to back up that claim with a scientific paper, but I love it when science confirms common sense. Researchers from the Thermal Ergonomics Laboratory of the University of Sydney, in Australia, discovered, in 2017, that warm beverages can protect athletes from decreased performance in cold weather. They found that humans have thermoreceptors in their abdomens. And drinking warm or cool drinks can improve perceived and actual body temperature regulation, essentially ramping up or throttling down sweating.

This means that while a warm drink probably doesn’t actually change your core temperature, it nevertheless improves your body’s capacity to handle extreme cold or heat. Paradoxically, drinking a warm drink before exercise can jumpstart your perspiration, giving your body a headstart in dealing with hot environments as well.

Not only that, warm drinks may increase circulation. A 2018 study from Japan found that women who were given a hot beverage to drink experienced a rise in the temperature of their hands. One drink was brewed from dried ginger, and the other (a placebo) was flavored to mimic ginger but did not contain the herb. The ginger-drinkers showed increased hand temperature for twice as long as those receiving the warm placebo. So it appears that certain plants, like ginger, can amplify the power of warm drinks.

Mindfulness

Continuing with the obvious, warm beverages can encourage us to slow down and be more mindful about our consumption. When those beverages are too hot to drink when we first wrap our hands around them, we are forced to wait for them to cool. And while we can always scroll on our phones until the tea or coffee won’t scald our mouths, another approach is possible.

Centuries-old tea ceremonies in Chinese, Japanese, and other Asian cultures include rituals that provide a central focus and allow for the cultivation of presence and mindfulness. The idea is that how you drink tea can become a template for how you focus and interact with the world at other, more challenging times. Since drinking hot tea takes a while, given that you have to sip rather than gulp or chug, there’s time to imbue the process with meaning beyond the simple act of hydrating.

Health

Warm beverages may also aid digestion by relaxing stomach muscles. A 2011 study from Turkey found that a cup of warm liquid helped patients who were having their gallbladders removed surgically experience fewer gastrointestinal spasms. As with the ginger experiment I just mentioned, it appears that certain herbs are more potent than others in bringing about relaxation of these involuntary muscles. Some examples of relaxing teas include peppermint, ginger, chamomile, and Pu’er, a fermented tea traditionally grown in the Yunnan Province of China.

Traditions around the world prescribe warm beverages to heal the sick, too. Hot drinks can relieve cold and flu symptoms, and plant-based ingredients can provide additional benefits. Lemons squeezed in hot water can boost immunity through its generous vitamin C content. And the pectin that comes along with the pulp is a potent prebiotic that can contribute to a healthy gut microbiome. Ginger supports the liver as it breaks down toxins for elimination. And many teas, including green, white, redbush, and hibiscus, contain compounds that fight inflammation, cancer, and other ailments. Check out this article for a deep dive into the best beverages to drink when you’re sick.

Calming

Some warm beverages can help you transition from the bustle of life and help you to calm down. Containing ingredients called adaptogens, these relaxing drinks can stimulate the production of signaling molecules that promote balance and relaxation. For example, the l-theanine compound found in many teas stimulates the body’s production of GABA and serotonin, both of which are associated with reduced anxiety and increased well-being.

Happiness

The English language extends the concept of temperature far beyond the physical into the metaphorical. If you feel “warmly” toward someone, you may desire to approach them. If they’re cool toward you, or worse, give you the cold shoulder, they’re telling you to stay away. Science has discovered that our experiences of temperature can actually influence our inner states — and even our appraisals of others.

In a fascinating 2008 study, researchers at the University of Colorado asked participants to quickly assess whether a person they were just introduced to had a caring and generous personality. Right before the meeting, the participants were handed a cup of coffee, which, as far as they knew, had nothing to do with the study. Half received hot coffee, and half got iced coffee. The hot coffee recipients found their target person slightly (but statistically significantly) warmer than those holding iced coffee. And it wasn’t a generalized “I think better of people” effect; the temperature of the beverage didn’t influence their assessments of attractiveness, seriousness, strength, or honesty.

One of the happiest countries in the world understands the psychological and social benefits of warm drinks as well. In Danish culture, hot beverages are central to the concept and practice of hygge (pronounced hoo-gah), a term that encompasses coziness, physical warmth and comfort, as well as things like friendship and laughter. Heat is a big part of the experience of hygge; hyggelig (that’s the adjective) environments include heat from wood stoves, light from candles, and steaming mugs of hot beverages.

Types of Warm and Relaxing Drinks

If your imagination for warm drinks extends no further than coffee, tea, and cocoa, here’s a variety of ideas for your consideration.

Golden milk (turmeric & plant-based milk)

Also known as a turmeric latte, the most widespread version contains milk and turmeric (that most awesome of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory plants!). Below, you’ll find a plant-based recipe that includes other Indian spices too. If you want a delicious and nutrient-packed golden milk “mix,” here’s one from Organifi.

Hot chocolate

A classic that dates back to the Aztecs and took Europe by storm after they figured out that adding milk and sugar to the beverage moderated the bitterness of the cacao bean. Our recipe below keeps it plant-based and relies on small amounts of healthier sweeteners.

Herbal teas

Over the past 20 years, herbal tea has become one of the most popular relaxing drinks, taking the US by storm. Tea houses, retail shops that sell nothing but the dried leaves, a renewed interest in tea ceremonies, as well as entire supermarket aisles devoted to different types and flavors, means that you could try a different variety every day for a decade and not have to repeat a tea. Find an amazing sampler pack of 35 organic herbal teas here.

Coffee and brewed teas

These classics definitely deserve a place on this list. Coffee, some have argued, is the drug that fueled capitalist expansion and created industrial society. Be that as it may, coffee, while not appropriate for everyone, definitely has significant health benefits, like reduced risk of stroke and dementia, as well as enhanced athletic performance. And caffeinated teas such as green, white, and black varieties also are rich in antioxidants and other phytonutrients. Find a delicious fair trade and organic coffee here. For our article on the stunning health benefits of matcha tea, click here.

Mushroom/adaptogenic elixirs

Adaptogens are ingredients that support healthy immune systems and can help us with resiliency and recovering from life’s stresses. Many warm beverages incorporate these ingredients, such as adaptogenic mushrooms like reishi, cordyceps, and turkey tail, as well as other plants like holy basil, ashwagandha, and maca. Pique Tea makes a delicious, satisfying, and relaxing (albeit a bit pricey) Reishi Calm Elixir, here.

Warm lemonade

Lemonade isn’t just for summer picnics and roadside stands. A squeeze of fresh lemon into a glass of hot water can add variety to that glass of water, as well as giving you an antioxidant and prebiotic boost. For extra flavor, check out our lavender tea lemonade recipe below.

Tea lattes

When it comes to rich, frothy, hot drinks, coffee has nothing on tea. Whether regular tea leaves, herbal recipes, or Indian-inspired chai brimming with spices, you can out-Starbucks Starbucks with your own custom-made and healthy concoctions. And you can even spell your name correctly on the cup! Want to use your own homemade plant-based milk? Check out this article for tips.

5 Relaxing Drink Recipes to Unwind With

Get ready to feel your calmest self with these healing, soul-fulfilling, and relaxing beverages. With each sip, notice the warmth from your head to your toes. Whether you’re a creamy latte-lover, morning caffeine enthusiast, or an herbal tea aficionado, there’s something for everyone below.

1. FRN’s Creamy Golden Milk

There’s something incredibly soothing about sipping on Golden Milk. Maybe it’s knowing that you’re giving your body exactly what it needs. Or, perhaps it’s the warm creamy beverage traveling through your body, touching what feels like every cell along the way. Whatever the reason, the healing blend of spices is sure to warm your heart, toes, and everything in between.

To see how I make this recipe at home, watch the video below:

2. Sweet and Nutty Oat Milk with Cinnamon Spice

If you’ve tried it, you know that making your own oat milk is super simple, tasty, and nutritious. Better yet, take it to the next level by adding sweet and nutty tahini and cinnamon spice flavors. Enjoy this warm and relaxing beverage in the morning, afternoon, or evening since it’s caffeine-free!

3. Soothing Matcha Tea

Starting your day with Soothing Spiced Matcha Tea provides a calm, sustainable energy boost and a gentle sense of awareness and focus. Matcha and turmeric are the superstars here. Give it a try in place of a cup of coffee, and let us know how it makes you feel.

4. Lavender Tea Lemonade

Lavender’s aroma is known for its calming effect. But did you know that edible lavender can offer the same benefit? This mild tea with a hint of lemon is perfect for an afternoon of unwinding with a book and blanket, or an indulgent evening with a bath and candle. No matter the setting, revel in the relaxation response as you sip and enjoy.

5. Hot Coco-Cocoa

You might have guessed that a warming and calming beverage article wouldn’t be complete without cocoa. Cocoa is the solid portion of chocolate (cocoa butter is the fat portion), and it’s where all of those healing compounds live. They give us a happy and energized yet calm and satisfied feeling when we consume it. Enjoy this homemade version of an all-time favorite.

Cuddle Up with a Relaxing Drink

There are lots of different warm and health-giving drinks you can enjoy year-round, in hot or cold weather. Warm beverages can benefit your physical health, mood, and overall well-being. And warm drinks can help you relax and unwind whenever you need to give yourself a gift of comfort and self-care. Some of them can also be a great way to give your body the antioxidants and other nutrients it needs to thrive, so drink up!

Tell us in the comments:

• What’s your “go-to” warm or relaxing drink? When do you enjoy drinking it?
• What ideas did you get from this article about warm beverages to try?
• Are there other relaxing beverages that you like that aren’t mentioned here?

Feature image: iStock.com/Alina Rosanova

The post Warm and Relaxing Drinks You Can Unwind with Anytime appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

These days, more than ever, it’s important to pay attention to what you’re putting into your body — and how it affects your health.

So can you enjoy summertime, summer picnics, and summer foods while showing love to your body as well as your taste buds?

Yes. But not if you stick with the status quo.

Unhealthy Summer Foods to Avoid

Let’s start with the bad and the ugly: America’s favorite summer foods that compromise health (and, incidentally, are hard on the environment, too).

The (Hot) Dog Days are Over

Perhaps the most famous form of summer fare in the United States is the hot dog. Americans consume roughly seven billion hot dogs each summer between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

But there are some very good reasons why you and your guests might want to leave the hot dogs out of your summer celebrations.

Impacts on Your Health

For starters, hot dogs, like all processed meats, are categorized as Group 1 carcinogens by the World Health Organization (WHO). This puts hot dogs in the same class as tobacco and asbestos. Just a single hot dog per day was found to increase the risk of colorectal cancer by 18%. And if you worry about the effects of cell phone usage on your children’s brains, you might be shocked to learn that eating a single hot dog per week can raise a child’s risk of a brain tumor seven times more than regular cell phone use.

Hot dogs also contribute to heart disease. They contain loads of sodium and saturated fat. And the more processed meats (like hot dogs) people eat, the higher their risk of heart disease. Hot dogs also increase the risk for type 2 diabetes, partly because of their saturated fat content, and also because of the nitrates and nitrates that can damage the pancreatic cells that make insulin.

Environmental Impacts

And then there’s the environmental impact of animal products like hot dogs. A 2014 French study on sustainable diets found that diets containing animal products contributed the most to greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, livestock CO2 emissions represent 14.5% of all human-related emissions. And factory farms produce large amounts of animal waste, which causes water and air pollution.

Unsettling Ingredients

Then, there’s the gross factor: hot dogs are frequently recalled due to contamination. While bacterial contamination is bad enough (listeria is no friend to your digestive system and can be fatal in newborns, unborn babies, and people with compromised immune systems), other reasons for hot dog recalls have included metal shards and bone fragments. And a hard-hitting Time magazine article from 2015 also listed 38 other things Americans say they’ve found in a hot dog. The list included a dime, a white hex nut, a pill, metal shavings, a large ant, a clump of hair that might have been eyelashes, and the tip of a razor blade. And don’t get me started on the legal ingredients that find their way into the hot dog supply, like “head meat”  and “animal feet.” I think it’s fair to say that hot dogs won’t win any health food awards this summer (or ever!).

Hamburger is No Helper

Hamburgers, the other quintessentially American grilled meat, have their own equally troubling set of problems. The estimated 375 million burgers consumed just on a typical July 4th in the US not only increase the risk of heart disease and diabetes, but also pack an extra cancer punch due to the formation of heterocyclic amines (HCAs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the grilling process. And you don’t even have to eat the burger to suffer the consequences, as these compounds become airborne in addition to clinging to the meat.

And if a committee convened to brainstorm ways to make hamburgers even worse for your health, they’d be hard-pressed to outdo the cheeseburger. Adding in dairy-based cheese loads up even more saturated fat and sodium. A typical BBQ-made cheeseburger can contain half of your RDI of saturated fat. And a burger with all the fixings, including cheese, might have up to 1,000 mg of sodium or more, which is also almost half your daily limit.

Let the Chips Fall — Away from You

Potato chips and other fried foods aren’t about to earn a place in any healthy eating guidebooks, either. To add insult to their high fat and sodium content, many chip companies use unhealthy and genetically modified oils, or even trans fats to produce their products. And the high-temperature cooking process combined with the high starch content of the chips leads to the creation of a toxic chemical called acrylamide, which studies show can cause cancer in laboratory animals.

Soda Problems

After eating high sodium-containing hot dogs, hamburgers, and chips, most people will get mighty thirsty. Unfortunately, one of the most common summer beverages of choice is soda, which is bad for you in so many ways, from rotting teeth to increasing the risk of heart disease, to damaging metabolism in ways that hamper fat burning and prevent weight loss, to increasing the risk of cancer and asthma. And please don’t think that diet sodas are the answer either. Their artificial sweeteners can wreak havoc on your beneficial gut bacteria and may be even worse for you than regular soda.

Ice Cream is No Treat

Here’s a problematic summer food that hits home for me: ice cream. As you may know, my dad, John Robbins (co-founder of Food Revolution Network), walked away from his place as heir to the Baskin-Robbins ice cream empire in his early 20s once he began to see the connections between the dairy industry and human health, animal welfare, and environmental quality. (That’s the reason he grew up with an ice-cream-cone-shaped pool in his backyard. And I grew up in a one-room cabin on an island off the western coast of Canada!)

Seriously, though, I’m glad my dad had the courage to walk away. Leaving aside the environmental and ethical concerns associated with dairy, and, therefore, ice cream, the stuff really isn’t good for you. Ice cream has plenty of ingredients that are concerning to all types of diets, plant-based eaters and keto adherents alike. Aside from the large amounts of saturated dairy fat and sugar, many ice cream brands use artificial colorings (linked to hyperactivity and possibly ADD/ADHD) and “natural” flavors that are often anything but. Plus, when you consider that the average American consumes 23 pounds of ice cream each year, it’s definitely not helping our collective health (or weight!).

Booze Blues

Finally, we can’t talk about problematic summer foods and beverages without mentioning alcohol. From coolers of beer to fancy drinks with umbrellas and cute names, Americans love to beat the heat and take the edge off with alcoholic beverages. You can read all about the dangers of even moderate alcohol consumption here. But I’ll just list a few of the conditions caused, correlated, or worsened by excessive drinking: Alzheimer’s and other dementias; depression and anxiety; cancers of the liver, breast, mouth, throat, esophagus, colon, and rectum; organ failure; obesity; heart disease; type 2 diabetes; and overall risk of death, including risk for alcohol-related accidents, and the list goes on.

Well, that was a depressing survey of some of the most popular summer foods on the standard American diet! Maybe we should just cancel all the picnics and stay inside and watch Netflix by ourselves instead. But not so fast! The good news is, there are plenty of delicious summer foods you can love that will also love you back.

Healthy Summer Foods to Enjoy

The key to choosing healthy summer foods can be summed up in a single word: hydration. The healthiest, most refreshing summer foods contain lots of water, which is convenient since hot summer temperatures will cause you to sweat more — making hydration all the more important.

Foods with High Water Content

The best way to hydrate is by drinking lots of water. But you can also stay hydrated with other beverages and with foods. Which foods? Let’s start with fruits and vegetables, which are so high in water that they’re, by definition, low in calories. And, of course, they’re chock full of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and other health-promoting phytochemicals, too.

When possible, choose fruits and vegetables that are also grown near you. Local food is fresher and more delicious, as well as having the lowest carbon footprint. You may be able to shop at farmers markets, or check this guide to see what’s in season near you.

If you can, go organic too, as organically grown produce has been shown to be healthier for you, and much better for farmworkers and the environment.

If you’re looking for hydration superstars, here’s a list of summer foods with exceptionally high water content:

• Watermelon
• Cucumber
• Celery
• Berries
• Cantaloupe
• Tomatoes
• Peaches
• Oranges
• Lettuce
• Bell Peppers
• Cauliflower
• Cabbage
• Grapefruit
• Pineapple

Foods with Electrolytes

When it’s hot outside and you’re sweating, you don’t just need water, but also the electrolytes that you lose through perspiration. Some foods that are high in electrolytes (especially, but not exclusively, sodium and potassium) include:

• Leafy greens
• Avocados
• Potatoes
• Beans and other legumes
• Seeds (pumpkin seeds, flaxseeds, etc.)
• Bananas
• Olives

Creative Ways to Eat Those Good-for-You Summer Foods

Don’t worry. I’m not saying you have to replace hot dogs, hamburgers, and potato chips with just plain, raw fruits and vegetables. You can still make delicious, fun, and filling dishes that scream “summer festivities” with no sense of deprivation or compromise.

Sides and appetizers can include fruit salads, bean dips with cut-up veggies, and steaming hot corn on the cob.

Main dishes can even mimic the old favorites, including carrot dogs and veggie burgers. Kebabs with seitan or organic tofu instead of meat are also vehicles for grilling veggie and fruit chunks. One of my favorite combos includes marinated mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, pineapple, red onion, and marinated extra-firm tofu on a skewer. Salads can also serve as main dishes, especially when you add hearty ingredients like beans, quinoa, and roasted veggies. You can grill tofu, tempeh, and seitan “steaks,” and even make steaks out of large, sliced cauliflower heads or seasoned jackfruit.

Dessert is only limited by your imagination. You can create elegant fruit kebabs with berries, grapes, apple and grapefruit chunks, or whatever else is in season. A blender and a freezer can collaborate to make you fresh fruit popsicles. And there’s always N’ice cream: homemade non-dairy ice cream (free from all those unhealthy additives).

And if you want some beverage variety, in addition to good old H2O, you can go with unsweetened or stevia-sweetened iced teas and coffees, fresh-squeezed juices, smoothies, and even mocktails.

For more ideas and lots of recipes, check out our “Ultimate Guide to Hosting or Attending a Healthy, Plant-Powered 4th of July Celebration (Or Other Summer Party).”

So there you have it. There are healthy and delicious summer foods out there that you can enjoy without compromising your health. Now, want some recipes?

5 Hydrating and Nutritious Summer Food Recipes

Whether your picnic plans involve spreading a blanket on the grass or in your living room, these light and easy recipes will help you stay hydrated, nourished, and energized. They’re a healthy summer in your bowl, on your plate, and in your glass!

1. Chilled Cucumber Avocado Soup

Refreshing, nourishing, and perfect for warm summer evenings, this creamy, cooling soup is sure to satisfy. If your cucumbers are unwaxed, keep the skin on to maximize nutrition. Otherwise, go ahead and peel them; either option is good for you!

2. Sweet and Smoky Tofu, Vegetable, and Pineapple Skewers

The flavors in this dish work wonderfully together, especially if you give the skewers a little time to marinate before baking or grilling. The umami flavor of the mushrooms combined with the sweet pineapple and savory tofu will satisfy all of your taste buds!

3. Kale Pomegranate Salad with Chopped Walnuts and Sliced Apples

This could be labeled the most refreshing summer salad on the planet with the apples and fresh pomegranate mixed in with the kale. The dressing is nice and light — and super flavorful.

4. Tropical Delight Smoothie Bowl

Having an impromptu picnic at home? Bring the tropics to you with this Tropical Delight Smoothie Bowl that’s packed with water for hydration and electrolytes for replenishment. Close your eyes and envision yourself on a beautiful breezy beach!

5. Blueberry Lemon Cooler 

Staying hydrated during the hot summer months is essential. And adding flavorful and nourishing fruits can make it easier to get all the hydration you need. Stock up on local berries, and add a splash of vitamin-C-packed lemon for a nutrient-powered and delicious alternative to water. It will add something special to your next indoor or outdoor picnic!

Enjoy Summer Foods!

Summer is a great time for enjoying the outdoors — and enjoying food outdoors. But whether you spend most of your time outside in the sun, or inside with the A/C offering you relief, you can still enjoy delicious, healthy, and festive summer foods safely. And if you’re able to share and celebrate with friends and loved ones, all the better!

Tell us in the comments:

• What are your favorite summer fruits and vegetables?
• Have you tried a homemade carrot dog or veggie burger? What did you think?
• Do you have any favorite kinds of healthy summer food festivities?

Featured Image: iStock.com/Arx0nt

Read Next:

• How to Have a Happy (and Healthy and Sustainable) 4th of July (or Any Summer Celebration!)
• Sweeten the End of a Plant-Powered Meal with These 8 Healthy Summer Dessert Recipes

The post The Best and Worst Summer Foods + 5 Healthy Picnic Recipes to Enjoy appeared first on Food Revolution Network.

This anti-stress smoothie is packed with good for you ingredients that help minimize the negative effects of stress on your body. Plus, it tastes like creamy chocolate almond bliss, and can easily be eaten with a spoon, giving it an even more decadent feel.

How to make this plant-based recipe

Tell us in the comments what you think about this healthy, plant-based recipe because we’d love to know! 

Adding these 7 foods to your regular routine can help your body deal with stress.

The post Revolutionary Recipe: Anti-Stress Smoothie appeared first on Food Revolution Network.